Morotai surfing communities feature in Travel Programme.

ALF Morotai has the pleasure of featuring in Indonesia’s TV One Travel Programme “Personal Nusantara” (Archipelago Charm)! Keen to find out more about the local surfing communities and that girls surfed here too, the production team arrived with one of Indonesia’s top girl surfers, Salini Rengganis from Java (see photo).  This was a thrill for local surfer girls who up until now had not met a professional girl surfer! 

Together Salini and the local surfers enjoyed some of Morotai’s surf spots and shared their experiences of surfing. Salini commented that Morotai surfers are courageous and surf well! These chances to meet Indonesian surfers from other areas of the archipelago are rare but incredibly impactful.  Morotai’s surfers gain a first hand experience of opportunities that may exist for them, they feel a part of something, a sense of belonging to an identity that many others across Indonesia are a part of too, and love too, just like them.  For an island isolated for many years due to the religious conflict of the early 2000s and its geographical location, this makes a big impression. Dreams become more attainable, Indonesia a smaller place and the feeling of isolation dissipates.

Our national director, Maria, was interviewed for the programme.  Explaining ALF’s work over the last five years, using surfing as a tool for engagement to bring social, economic and environmental benefit, the TV journalist commented on the success of this evidenced by the number, ability, joy and enthusiasm of the surfers, the number of surf clubs, the clean beaches at the surf spots, the home stays which have opened and the fact they a TV station in Jakarta had heard of Morotai’s surfers!