Danjugan island: Nature’s sanctuary

MANILA, Philippines – Danjugan – just off the shore of mainland Negros Occidental – is different from any other island in many ways. Viewing its lush green expanse as you approach the island and seeing the corals in the shallows below you through the crystal clear water already hints at the unsullied, natural beauty that is all too uncommon in our world today.

Before being admitted into the island, guests are given an orientation about the unique island experience that awaits them. “We are not after crowds coming to the island. We have a limited carrying capacity and we respect that capacity everyday,” says Dave Albao, executive director of the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation (PRRCF).

The declaration may sound surprising – and even counterintuitive for a tourist site – but after experiencing the island, one will understand why it must be so carefully protected, and policies strictly enforced.

“It’s a very unique set-up because the island itself has been acquired through fundraising for conservation,” says Albao, who served as island manager for two years. Danjugan was bought in 1994 with the sole intention of saving it and creating a wildlife sanctuary. Now, the human population is zero – there are no permanent residents of the island – making it a true haven for wildlife.

PADI diving instructor Gerry Ledesma started the ambitious endeavor of acquiring the island when he noticed, after leading diving trips in the area, the degradation of the reefs in Danjugan’s vicinity.

Across the island, the mining port of Bulata had closed and displaced mining workers had taken to dynamite and cyanide fishing. “At that time, the wildlife conservation mindset of locals was not developed,” says Albao.

A local, he shares, offered to sell Ledesma a tree that would make good furniture lumber – a tree where rare eagles were nesting. Ledesma instead decided to buy the whole island and keep the tree intact.

Thus began the fundraising process, which led to a link up with World Land Trust, an organization based in the UK that likewise purchases land for conservation. There are visitors who come to the island today proudly showing their certificates of green shares, proof that they had helped purchase Danjugan.

Albao adds, the organization was able to make the first environmental loan from LandBank.

The island is now a conservation site and marine protected area and part of the Southern Negros Marine Key Biodiversity Area. The PRRCF, local government and local community cooperate in protecting the island’s reefs and fish.

“This is the bottom line on why Danjugan exists: Danjugan is basically a bank – a bank for fish to recover,” says Albao.

The Danjugan bank hold riches far beyond money. “It’s about finding ways for species and their habitat to recover.”

The island and its reefs hold 572 species of fish, 244 hard coral species, 74 bird species, 10 bat species and much more. It has seven viable ecosystems – the beach forest, mangroves, lagoons, bat caves, coral reefs, seagrass beds and the open sea.

Albao adds, “We are a marine and wildlife sanctuary first, not a resort.” In fact, if visitors do not follow the rules, they may be asked to leave.

There is no karaoke on Dajugan – no noisy parties, no TV – because there is very limited electricity and no cell service. There are no “artificial activities” like ziplines, which have sprouted in many scenic locations around the country. “We appeal to a certain market, a certain group of people who really enjoy nature at its most simple,” Albao admits.

The accommodations are modest – there are camp-style cabanas at the Moray Lagoon Camp, while on the other end of the island, on Typhoon Beach, there are lovely mud houses, which are the most luxurious accommodations you can get on the island – private room and bathroom. The whole Typhoon Beach may be rented out by groups.

There are also ecotours and day trips for those lodged on the mainland.

While Danjugan is not primarily a tourist site, its projects are supported by earnings from tourism. Divers and snorkelers, students and professional biologists and botanists and avid birdwatchers flock to the island. Artists’ residencies and yoga retreats have also been held here, where the artists and yogis can reflect without the distractions of modern life, and really become one with nature.

Dajugan advocates Conservation Tourism, Albao says – not to be confused with Ecotourism. Albao is quick to add that ecotourism should be conservation tourism too, but nowadays it just equates experiencing beautiful natural sites, but often forgets about protecting these from destruction brought about by the tourists themselves.

With added emphasis on conservation, Danjugan island follows the principles of ecotourism to a T:

First, it is low impact. Of the 43 hectares of the island, all human structures, including the trails, amount to a mere four hectares – less than 10 percent of the whole property. The other 90 percent, as Albao puts it, is left to wilderness. A limited carrying capacity also applies, limiting the impact of guests on the environment.

Second, a Danjugan visit is educational and experiential. After the orientation, Albao took our group on a trek to Typhoon Beach, where we would have lunch, then snorkel and kayak. Along the way we passed by a fully-occupied bat cave and Albao identified trees and plants, giving us tidbits of information as the island unfolded before us with each step. Wildlife interpretation, Albao says, is central to every visit.

Third, the project benefits the communities and conservation. “All visitors are our donors,” says Albao. The locals as well, who hail from the neighboring areas, have come to appreciate nature. “Tourism activities are designed for guests and locals to better understand and value ecosystems and wildlife,” he says.

The island offers marine and wildlife camps that have an experiential curriculum: Nature Appreciation through snorkelling, trekking and birdwatching; interactive classes on ecology and biodiversity, fish and coral identification, bird and bat biology, climate change and environmental issues; creative interaction on sustainable living, coastal clean-up, an environmental debate and even an amazing race.

Finally, Danjugan aims to create a memorable experience for both guests and hosts. If the guests are happy, it is a successful tourism project, Albao says, adding that for them not only the guests should be happy but the locals as well. “The locals are not just there to serve,” he says. They are also there to enjoy the beauty of their home.

Equally important are the post-visit behavioral changes in the guests. “They should be moved by their experience.”

Indeed, one cannot help but be inspired by the untamed beauty of Danjugan. The limited running water will be overtaken by the abundant sea; the lack of cell service made up for by the excitement of encountering rare birds and fish up close, without a screen or glass separating you.

Just a short distance from the shore, the clear waters are perfect for snorkeling. There are healthy reefs and giant clams – now a vulnerable species – which have flourished anew after becoming near-extinct when locals used to harvest them for food. Some clams found in the deeper parts of the protected area are almost a meter long, says Albao.

Coconut crabs and other vulnerable crustaceans are likewise spared from the dining plate in Danjugan.

The reefs in the shallows of Typhoon Beach, says Albao, represent the story of the island sanctuary. “These were badly damaged before, to the extent that marine biologists were surprised at how resilient the corals are.”

A regular visitor to the island is a Beach Thick Knee, the only bird of its species on the island. Many birdwatchers have visited Danjugan just to catch a glimpse of this lonely bird who still makes its mating call everyday, waiting for a reply.

On the three kilometer boat ride back from the island to the old Bulata port, it’s almost jarring to see the rusted equipment and dilapidated structures abandoned there – a ghost of the port’s mining past. It is the antithesis of the lush greens and blues of Danjugan Island, emphasizing even stronger how important it is to protect the wildlife thriving there.

Albao shares, many people who have seen the island tell him he is so lucky to live in paradise. “I tell them, this is not luck. This is our natural birthright. All of us should be seeing this everyday. This is our natural design – to wake up to the sounds of the birds, to see horizons, to see green and blue, to enjoy swimming in clean water.”

Many of us surrounded by technology and concrete often forget this.

Albao continues, “It’s not just a sanctuary for animals and plants, it’s also a sanctuary for humans to enjoy our connection with nature. If we cultivate this love for nature, people will know more and understand more. This will turn into sustainable patterns of living.”