Madeline Steel 11E – Bali, Indonesia (Animal Welfare)

Our trip to Bali was a very fulfilling experience. We set personal and group objectives to achieve before we left for the trip, which gave us a learning objective to guide us during the trip. My first impression of Bali is that it is quite an underdeveloped country and the culture is very different to Hong Kong’s. It was very exciting, being able to meet the dogs at ACT4BaliDogs, the charity organization that we worked with for most of the time. 

During the week with ACT4BaliDogs, we helped decorate the walls of the organization’s building to help increase the attractiveness of the premises, create dog beds so the dogs they rescue would have places to sleepin, do daily tasks like bathing and cleaning the dogs and most importantly raise funds for the organisation. We were also able to visit Villa Kitty Foundation, the organization that helps care for abandoned kittens and cats. We spent time with the kittens that do not have mothers since they have been abandoned. On one of the days, we also visited the Bali Wildlife Centre and learnt about the different wildlife that have been rescued from illegal poachers and traders. We were exposed to the Balinese culture throughout the trip by trying traditional foods, watching the traditional Balinese dances and visiting temples.

Through all the experiences we were able to understand how the Balinese culture influenced the locals’ views on domestic animals. Some people would abandon animals rather than kill them with their own hands due to their belief in karma. After discussing as a group we realized it was wrong of us to judge their actions, since our inconsiderate actions to the environment would also indirectly kill wild animals. Although we don’t kill them with our own hands, our unethical actions could result in their death. Overall, the CAS trip was a good learning experience to be more ethical and environmentally friendly so that we do not harm any animals.