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This two week expedition is spent at the Hoga Island Marine Research Centre in the Wakatobi National Park. Students can spend some of their time working towards a more in depth research project in addition to dive training, partaking in a reef ecology course and assisting with a range of research projects.
During their first week students will be completing one of the following options, if they are not yet dive trained:
If the students are qualified divers they will take part in the course below:
If the students have learnt to dive in their first week they will take part in the course below:
If they have completed the Indo-Pacific Reef Ecology and Survey Techniques Course during their first week the students will be able to complete mini research investigations and will also have various workshops and sessions with the science teams as follows:
The Coral Triangle is a marine region that spans Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste. This region is recognised for having the highest diversity of marine species anywhere on the planet. At the very heart of the coral triangle, at the epicentre of biodiversity, lies the Wakatobi Marine National Park, the location of Opwall’s marine research base in Indonesia. The Hoga Island Marine Station has been the centre for Opwall’s Indonesian marine research programme for nearly 30 years. During this time, teams of international and Indonesian scientists have worked at this site during the Opwall survey seasons and as a result have produced more than 200 peer-reviewed papers. The research outcomes and discoveries from these studies have had local, national and international significance.
For the last 15 years, Opwall has also been running an extensive monitoring programme around Hoga and eastern Kaledupa for macroinvertebrates, fish communities, coral cover and community structure. In 2025 the long-term monitoring programme will continue, however there will a new research focus introduced. With recent changes in benthic community structure and a reduction in the size and abundance of many reef fish species that have occurred in the Wakatobi, our long-term research goal is to understand the trophic consequences of these changes, and develop an ecosystem model to represent the dynamics of the Wakatobi region. To support these goals, in 2025 research projects will focus on the assessing the consequences of shifts from coral to sponge dominated states and investigating the potential of deep reefs to provide refugia for sharks, rays and other predatory fish.
The costs of a school group expedition can be highly variable. There is a standard fee paid to Opwall for all expeditions but the location you are flying from, the size of your group, and how you wish to pay all impact the overall cost.
You can choose to book the expedition as a package (which includes your international flights) or you can organise your travel yourself and just pay us for the expedition related elements.
If you are booking your expedition as a package, you also have the option of being invoiced as a group, or on an individual basis.
Climate
At the marine sites during the day, the weather is normally sunny and warm (around 30 degrees Celsius), and the night temperatures drop to around 20-25 degrees Celsius. Being on the coast means there is often a pleasant breeze so it does not always feel this hot. It rains rarely, but when it does it tends to be very heavy for short periods of time.
Fitness level required
Low-Moderate. Some fitness is required for in water activities, but conditions are relatively easy.
Hoga – Creature comforts
The Hoga Island Marine Station is an established facility that lies within the Wakatobi Marine National Park in central Indonesia. The station was rebuilt in 2016 and supports a dive centre, lecture theatre, classroom spaces, as well as a large dining room and kitchen facility. Simple huts owned by members of the local fishing community surround the station and serve as guest accommodation. The island supports reliable phone signal that allows limited internet access, but there is no wifi onsite.
Find out more about students can fundraise, as a group or individually
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