With an urban forest area of 90 hectares in the Depok Campus area, Universitas Indonesia (UI) has a wealth of various types of fruit trees and rare plants, including teak, coffee, rubber, meranti and matoa. Apart from that, in this area there are six artificial lakes which function as water catchment areas for the campus and the Depok area. The names of the six lakes are abbreviated to KAMPUS, namely Kenanga, Aghatis, Mahogany, Puspa, Ulin, and Salam. These lakes are also a source of water for the needs of various animals that live in the campus area.
The existence of various kinds of flora and fauna makes the UI city forest useful as a means of education and recreation for the community. Seeing this potential, two lecturers at the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB) UI, Liyu Adhi Kasari Sulung, SE. MBA., and Aswin D. Hadisumarto SE., MIA., carried out Community Service (pengmas) by inviting 20 Scout children from SDIT Darul Abidin, Depok, to take part in educational activities on flora and fauna in the UI forest.
“This activity is clear proof that UI forests can provide various benefits, such as sources of educational material, training, research and community service as well as being a place for educational recreation for the community,” said Aswin. In practice, scout students are taught how to behave in the forest and how to recognize potential danger factors.
Apart from that, they are also invited to take a walk in the forest while getting to know various types of plants and animals and also taught about the importance of preserving forests. After being introduced to various types of animals, students were invited to guess the animal based on the characteristics given by the guide. In participating, the students looked enthusiastic and they felt happy to be able to learn while playing.
The students are also provided with how to react if they encounter venomous animals in the forest. The guide teaches them to stay calm and not panic if they encounter snakes, scorpions or other venomous animals. They are also asked not to touch or approach venomous animals. If they encounter a venomous animal, students are advised to immediately move away and report it to their guide. The guide also explained that dangerous animals usually have striking color characteristics, such as poisonous snakes which usually have bright colors. Apart from that, it has aggressive behavior, like a scorpion which will sting if it feels threatened.
“I am very happy to be able to take part in this activity. I know a lot about the flora and fauna in UI forests,” said Nadia, one of the participants. The activity, which was carried out on Wednesday (1/11), was supported by the UI Occupational Health and Safety (K3L) team and the UI Directorate of Academic Development and Learning Resources (DPASDP).
