THE PROJECT IN BRIEF:

My name is Blake Paul Kendall, and last year I had the honor of spending time in the Jungles of Borneo with Penan communities. The Penan are the indigenous people of the jungles in Borneo and face the loss of their language and culture from outside threats. This inspired me and with members from the community we work shopped and wrote a children's book, that I went onto illustrate. This book is one small step in allowing for the Penan language and culture to be taught to the next generation.

This campaign will fund the costs to print a copy for every Penan child as well as cover the costs for myself and trusted Penan elders to travel around the jungle and hand deliver a copy to every child.


Above: Penan elder showing young ones the Nose Flute.


WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?


The Penan are the indigenous people of the jungles in Borneo and one of the last nomadic groups in the world. The Penan can be divided into two peoples- the Eastern and Western Penan. Even in the current context, out of the 10,000 Penan living today, there are only approximately 200 Penan living in the traditional nomadic style in the jungles of Sarawak, Malaysia and Brunei.

The Penan way of life changed dramatically in the middle of the 20^th Century with the arrival of Christian missionaries converting the Penan from their previous animistic beliefs. In the 1980’s when the clearance of the rainforest began, the Penan faced additional threats to maintaining their culture.

The destruction of the rainforest is not only an environmental problem, but also challenged the existence of their rainforest culture. With the ever-increasing deforestation from the Logging and Palm Oil Industries, the land that the Penan have lived harmoniously with and survived in a sustainable relationship; is threatened.

Right now, In addition to the threats to livelihood and their land, the Penan face the direct threat of the next generation loosing language due to the education system. All schooling for the Penan is in Malay and English. As such there is little space for the next generation to continue to learn language.


Above: Penan elder from Long Liwe with jungle bird.

Today, we are living in the age of endangered cultures.

Currently there are approximately 6,000 languages spoken on the earth. Every 2 weeks a language is spoken no more. Based on this alarming rate of loss, it is estimated that in 50 years, there will be only half of the languages spoken across the world.

WHY TRY AND PRESERVE LANGUAGES?

There are some people who challenge this alarming statistic, with the question of why we should save languages, when there are efficiencies in a globalized world to all speak the same language. It is however, under this argument that the very question of what it means to be human is asked. Each language contains the fibers of interpretation and an understanding of life. In a language, it is a whole understanding of the world, its own values and meanings that are lost with it. And it is always the oldest indigenous languages of the world; that have come from sustainable cultures that are the first to be lost forever.

The fight to protect these languages is the fight for diversity, and for the respect in knowing that there is no universally correct means of interpreting life. The development of the modernized West has many values, however there is much to be learned from the other languages and cultures.

Modernization does not have to mean Westernisation!

“If we are to achieve a richer culture, rich in contrasting values, we must recognize the whole gamut of human potentialities, and so weave a less arbitrary social fabric, one in which each diverse gift will find a fitting place.” Margaret Mead



Above: Penan elder on Sago-Processing trip.


EMPOWERMENT FOR THE PENAN & PRIDE IN CULTURE:

As well as acting as an educational resource for the Penan, there are also important aspects of empowerment that are necessary for culture and language maintenance. There needs to be a change in ‘outsiders’ understanding the Penan with a respect for their language and culture. And similarly, an empowerment of pride for Penan individuals, to know that there culture is different- not inferior.

Whilst filming and workshopping the book, I had a translator who could help me translate into English. He was a young man, recently finished his high school education- staying all of the way through. He was back in the village staying with his grandparents only for a couple of months, and soon was going to one of the Malay cities to find a job- he was hoping for retail. At the end of my trip, I sat him down and interviewed him. We spoke about dreams and goals, and all of the exciting questions facing a 20 year old. He was passionate about maintaining his culture and actively tried to engage with learning from his grandparents and other elders. However when he came to explain what his schooling life was like, he kept referring to being ‘backwards’. On asking what he meant, he simply explained, that as a Penan child, he was more ‘backwards’ and less capable than the other children. My heart dropped. All of the wisdom and knowledge in Penan culture suddenly meant nothing. Western knowledge had been imposed as superior to Penan knowledge. Yet again, I saw an indigenous culture that is deemed as ‘primitive’ under a colonialist-guise and made to feel lesser.


Above: Penan elder explaining medicinal properties of leaves.

THE FULL STORY

Over the past 3 years, I (Blake Paul Kendall) have been researching and working with Indigenous communities around the world researching the complexities of cultural maintenance and in direct attempt to create archives and to help in the preservation of language and culture.

In May 2013, I went to Borneo to meet with Penan communities about creating these archives by filming the Elders in the community and documenting their stories and knowledge that they’d like to record for the next generation. As an outsider to any community, from the beginning, the aim of the work is to be very clear with the divide between public and private knowledge. For the Penan, and many indigenous groups, there is a long history of outsiders coming in and taking stories. Whether used positively or negatively, it is often a process of taking. For me, this is a crucial distinction in my projects- what I work to create is first and foremost for the community.



Above: Long Iman.

Whilst spending time in Penan communities (Long Iman and Long Liwe), I was interested in understanding the modern context of life in the villages. It is the balance between living in a modern world and maintaining traditional culture that was a focus. For the Penan of these communities, the children left the village and went off to government schools where they would board. All schooling for these children was in Malay and in English. As such, there was little space for the next generation to continue to learn the language.

The dilemma is within the balance of Penan & Malay/ English education. The parents and elders of the community understood the great importance of Malay and English education in the modern times, as they acknowledged the opportunities that it brought. Often those with education were able to get jobs in the city and earn more money than selling off resources from the jungle. However, accessing education and opportunities does not have to mean compromising on knowing one’s culture and language.

Modernisation does not have to mean Westernisation!

This inspired me, and I stepped back from filming and spent my time with the community creating an educational resource. With members from the community, we workshopped and wrote a children’s book. I posed the question- what is a distinctly Penan story that reflects being a Penan? We discussed, and looked at different accounts and perspectives from several of the elders and the younger generations. The final decision was to tell a story of collecting and making sago.



Above: The children who inspired the book.

The next day we left the village of Long Liwe’ and went into the jungle as the elders and storytellers wanted to show me the process. ‘Apo Uleu’ (‘Our Sago’) is the result. It is the story of 5 children taken on a journey with their grandparents, as they embark on a ritual of collecting sago.

On leaving Long Liwe’ and Long Iman in Borneo and returning to Sydney, Australia I went on to illustrate the book, and bring the story to life with images. With each character in the book directly based on individuals from the community, I spent 3 months intensely illustrating the story from photos and notes and documentation taken from my time in the communities. As well as the photos, the many presents of beaded jewelry and hand woven rotan designs played as the inspiration for patterning and colour palettes depicted.

It has been in 2014 that I have had the generous support of brilliant colleagues and collaborators, as we take the many elements of story and compile them into the book.

Now the next chapter of the story is opened out to the next level of community, who believe in the project- with a request to get involved and support it!


Above: Mutang T'uo in Sarawak, Borneo.


Above: Blake Paul Kendall in Sarawak, Borneo.

Further Information & Involvement

This Crowd Funding Campaign will raise the funds so we can get the books printed and cover the costs of myself and trusted Penan elders, to travel throughout the jungles and hand deliver a copy to every child.

Up till now I have done it alone, funding the research trip and the months illustrating, but now I need your help.

The funds will cover:

-A print run of over 1000 Penan Language books for all of the children.
-A print run of over 1000 Penan & English Language books for outside communities (NGOs, project supporters, other indigenous communities).
-Cover return flights for me from Sydney to Borneo (economy).
-Cover the costs for transport through the jungle. Eg. 4WD at US$250 per day.
-Cover over 1 month of accommodation at villages (token fee of thanks to homes staying with).
-Cover the wages of porters, translators, drivers for over 1 month.
-Cover donation fee to each Penan elder distributing books.
-Basic daily allowances for team distributing books for a month

NB: Though a more expensive option, the books are printed on a synthetic paper to be able to withstand the high humidity levels in the jungle to ensure durability.
Transport options in the jungles of Sarawak are extremely limited and extremely expensive due to lack of resources and exorbitant prices of petrol.


Above: Exert from ‘Apo Uleu’ (‘Our Sago’)


Above: Penan man with White Crested Horn Bill

The big challenge facing this project is with the distribution itself, and the struggles of moving throughout the jungles. Due to the limited access to transport and the high prices of fuel in the region, the transportation between community settlements is extremely difficult.

In response to these difficulties of navigating, I have sought advise from travel experts in the field who have worked to offer suggestions and plans to make this possible, with routes and advise on most efficient means.

Notably, community-based Eco tourist group Picnic with the Penan, have been able to aid in this ambitious task of planning the routes and costs.
http://picnicwiththepenan.wordpress.com/