CONCERT for KOMODO in BALI: Rallying Worldwide support for Komodo’s Preservation

On Saturday night starting from 18.00 hrs on July 30th 2011, Bali's famous Kuta Beach will throb with the beats of a special Concert dedicated to Komodo, the living legend of Flores. The concert is an important part of the “Komodo: The Real Wonder of the World” Campaign that was launched on July 1st at the Philip Kotler Hall at MIM Campus, Jakarta. The campaign is aimed to raise global public awareness and participation in the conservation and preservation of the Komodo dragon and its natural habitat, found solely in Indonesia by the island of Flores.

The Concert for Komodo will be highlighted by East Nusatenggara ethnical music and will feature some of Indonesia’s most wellknown musicians including Dwiki Dharmawan, Dira Sugandi, Mercy Dumais, Sandhy Sondoro and others, who are part of the Friends of Komodo community.

The Friends of Komodo are an assembly of individuals who are passionate about the Conservation of Komodo, ranging from leaders in state-own enterprises, the private sector, press and media leaders, travel agents, celebrities, youth, women, netizen (internet users), and the general public.

The concert, organized by Marketeers and Kompas TV is scheduled to be aired on August 6th.  Founder & CEO of Markplus, Inc and Special Ambassador for Indonesia’s Tourism, Hermawan Kertajaya, said that the reason for choosing Bali as venue for the concert is because Bali acts as main hub that connects travelers to Komodo Island. “There are many flights to Komodo from Bali” he added. To reach Komodo one must fly from Bali to the town of Labuan Bajo on Flores, then take a boat to the Komodo National Park.

All are invited to join the Concert, which is free from admission, and everyone including tourists and locals are urged to join the concert and support its cause.

Komodo: The Real Wonder of the World campaign was launched and managed by Marketeers in response to the initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, working together with the private sector in support of the “Wonderful Indonesia” tourism campaign.

In addition to the Kuta Bali concert for Komodo, the campaign will also present  Komodo Nights scheduled to take place in Sydney on September 9th, 2011, and in Chicago on September 23rd, 2011. Tourists from the U.S.A and Australia as well as Europe still dominate international visitors to the Komodo Islands, thus the events are also aimed to galvanize participation from the media, travel agents, bloggers and Friends of Komodo in the world, particularly in the USA and Australia.

Another element in the campaign program is the Komodo Apps Contest Challenge. In this contest that offers considerable cash prizes, everyone can be involved in a competition to develop mobile applications for BlackBerry, Androids, and iPad/iPhone, with the purpose to promote the Komodo National Park.”The winning applications will be supported by us to be promoted worldwide” said Hermawan.