WIGAPALA and Entrepreneurship

WIGAPALA (Widyagama Pecinta Alam) is a nature lovers student organization at the University of Widyagama Malang. Through systematic nurturing activities, the WIGAPALA succesfully  have developed characters of entrepreneurship education. WIGAPALA is able to conduct activities in a relatively large scale, even in the national level, in coordinating the University. They are able to utilize the potential of the organization and its members to develop. They work with businesses, local governments, or other community components to support the activities of the organization. The WIGAPALA is able to show hard work and self-reliance by developing creativity and innovation into a business-oriented activities or business practices. Many experience and economic benefits of the business are used to develop the organization.

Competence building in each member of WIGAPALA can not be separated with the management systems and members activities. Each member receives a comprehensive nurturing pattern gradually, in education and training and other supporting activities. This training activity is the standard material in the world of nature lovers organization to accept new members. The training activities include class room and open space materials. The class room materials explain history of organization, introduction to the outdoors  world and nature lovers, personality development, mental strengthening ideology and pre-field activities. The open space materials include travelling management, field cooperation, independence, navigation, climbing, night travelling and survival. Students who pass the training is expressed as a member of WIGAPALA and allowed to use blue color scraf.

Advanced nurturing for the new members of the WIGAPALA include least four activities. First, the student actively involve  in the current organization activities. The least activity is in the scheduled pickets at the organization’s office on campus. Second, the students attend further training in the four activity divisions, namely rock climbing, fringe caves, rafting and mountaineering. Third, the student conduct research activities  focused on the students’ academic background. Fourth, the student do a mandatory climbing at least two mountains with altitude 3000 meters above sea level. The students who pass the advanced nurturing are awarded to wear dark blue scraf.

Annual activities of the WIGAPALA are considerable.  The activities include the training for a nature lovers at high school, community services; a contest organizers in rock climbing, fringe caves, rafting  or mountaineerin; outbound to the public, or taking apart in a race or contest held by other institutions. In the year 2005, the WIGAPALA held a national rock climbing contest (WIGAPALA Extreme Challenge) in University of Widyagama Malang.

In any event of the WIGAPALA, all members and even some alumni WIGAPALA are actively take a role. The alumni usually show a commitment to support the WIGAPALA activities. The alumni has formed a focal organization (focal WP) whose members that are well coordinated (on the online forum at http://WIGAPALA.wordpress.com/).  A executive Board of the focal WP periodically make a special meeting following the momentum of activities organized by WIGAPALA. At the same time, the alumni contribute constructive feedback to both the WIGAPALA and the University.

An experience to organize and take apart in various activities has generated a certain technical skills that are business-oriented as well. This indirectly introduce a entrepreneurial character and a practical business experience to the students. The technical skills of a nature lovers world has helped a outbound service to the community. In each activity, the student prepare a WIGAPALA attribute and implement procurement and administrative mechanisms independently. The technical skills in printing, crafts, and souvenirs are developed to support an organization activities and community service demand. Handicrafts and souvenirs from a natural or nuanced adventure materials has sold to market.

The experiences in any technical and managerial skills successfully provide the WIGAPALA member with real entrepreneurial character. The experiences have made of students and alumni to be a person who is hard work, independent, and self confidence.  A majority of WIGAPALA alumni (80 percent) work in a private sector. Some of them become a successful entrepreneur. Interestingly, the successful alumni who are willing to help new graduates who have not graduated or worked.

Two prominent alumni are Edi Nurwanto and Muhammad Asruri Sham. Edi Nurwanto is a 32-year-old, owner of Liza Tour & Travel in Malang. When he started his business in 2004, he still had one car for doing travel business.  Nowadays, he has a fleet of 45 various types of vehicles.  The business services expand to tours and travel, airfare sales, and outbound training, generating business turnover achieve billions of rupiah per month. The business services are set out from his experience as hobby of adventure and on behalf WIGAPALA chairman in the period 2000 to 2002.

Muhammad Sham Asruri is the manager of Wonosalam Training Center, located at the foot of the mountain Anjasmoro, Wonosalam district, Jombang Regency. Wonosalam Training Center is a Resource Development Institute, which manage outbound services, backpacking, adventures, teamwork, team building and leadership. Business has been running 5 years and has involved 11,000 participants from various sites, including schools, industry or government.