Plaque Dedicated To Rainforestation Koala Adopted By AustraLearn Study Abroad Program

Meet Tim Tam the AustraLearn koala.

The koala recently adopted by AustraLearn made an appearance last week from mom’s pouch in time for a ceremony dedicating a plaque featuring her name, “Tim Tam,” chosen last month in an online poll of students, employees and members of the education abroad field.

AustraLearn, which annually sends several thousand students from the United States and Canada to study abroad in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific, made a donation to support the koala, who is part of a colony at Rainforestation Nature Park in Cairns, Australia.

Tim Tam even made headlines last week in a feature article in the Cairns Post.

Tim Tam rides her mom's back.

“The majority of AustraLearn participants attending Australian programs begin their time abroad in Cairns as part of our six-day Bridging Cultures Program and actually visit Rainforestation to learn about the amazing koala species,” said Shelia Houston, director of the AustraLearn’s South Pacific Educational Support Centre in Queensland, Australia. “All of these students get the opportunity to hold a koala as part of Rainforestation’s ‘Cuddle a Koala’ program to build awareness of the dangers faced by these animals.”

Born June 4, 2009, Tim Tam only last week emerged from her mother’s pouch, giving wildlife officials a chance for photographs. Representatives from AustraLearn and Rainforestation also gathered last week to dedicate a plaque to Tim Tam.

Shelia Houston, director of AustraLearn's South Pacific Educational Support Centre, and Russell Hosp, operations manager of AustraLearn's Culture and Adventure Programs - Cairns, attended a ceremony dedicating a plaque to Tim Tam, a koala adopted by AustraLearn. Photo, Russell Hosp.

When she was born, Tim Tam was “completely furless, blind and weighing less than one gram,” said Kate Coughlan, head wildlife keeper at Rainforestation. “She spent the last six months safely in her mother’s pouch. Today we are lucky enough to see Tim Tam riding around on her mum’s back.”

Tim Tam will stay with her mom, Cybil, until she’s a year old and then moves to a nearby nursery. At 18 months, Rainforestation keepers will handle her for short sessions regulated by the Australian Koala Foundation to ensure her health and safety. The sessions will prepare her for the “Cuddle A Koala” program.

“AustraLearn’s adoption of Tim Tam allows us to raise awareness and educate visitors on the diminishing habitat and difficulties faced by our favorite Australian marsupial,” Coughlan said. “Funds generated by this initiative contribute to the ongoing research of the Australian Koala Foundation.”