The village of Alola is located on the northern side of the Owen Stanley range of Papua New Guinea. It lies 3 hours walk north of Eora creek and an hours walk south of the Isurava War Memorial.
Alola is a very quiet and friendly village. The currency of the village is not the Kina, the Australian dollar or the US dollar – it is quite simply the bananas, sweet potato, corn or other fruits or vegetables grown in their gardens or from hunting small birds and animals in the surrounding jungle. The Alola people are proud of the fact that they also have a very small heard of cattle, which they managed to walk up the incredibly steep Kokoda Trail, in a mountain side “cattle yard”.
Alola is unique in that it is one of the few villages across the Kokoda Trail that does not have an operational airstrip. This is important because other villages have the ability to both “fly in" and "fly out” goods to market and call in emergency support following injury or illness. In Alola’s case an emergency can require a six to eight hour walk, or stretcher carry, on very steep ground to the village of Kokoda.
Despite the fact that they have no power, no lighting, no hospital, no clinic, no teachers, no phones, no email and certainly no hot showers in the village, the Alola people have a strong community and hard working culture. They supplement their market income with revenue from guiding treks across the Kokoda Trail.
The Lost Battlefield, the great secret of the village for 68 years, presents both a risk and an opportunity. A risk in that, without support and careful management it’s unveiling may encroach on traditional village life. An opportunity in that villagers can participate in the re-instatement and operation of The Lost Battlefield site and benefit from the community development program administered by AVI.
This is a village that will make the most of its opportunity.
