Farmers help restore degraded forests in Sulawesi
A farmer from the village of Pamulukkang with his cocoa tree. Photo by Revelation Chandra. Irda tends to his two-hectare timber plantation in Pamulukkang Forest at the base of Tanete…
Mongabay series: Indonesia's Forest Guardians
Local and indigenous communities play an important role managing and protecting forests. Research published in 2014 by World Resources Institute and the Rights and Resources Initiative concluded that community-managed forests experienced an average deforestation rate that is 11 times lower than land outside their borders. Legally recognized, community-managed forest amounts to 513 million hectares or an eighth of the world’s forests, and there are many more community-managed forests that have yet to receive legal recognition, but should be provided that recognition by the government. To showcase some examples of community-managed forests, Mongabay's Indonesia team is developing a series of case studies in Indonesia.
Forest management by Sulawesi community attracts international attention
The village of Ngata Toro abuts protected forest in Lore Lindu National Park. Photo by Chris Paino. Ngata Toro borders Lore Lindu National Park in Central Sulawesi about a three-hour…
Sulawesi community regains access to forest on which it depends
Namu village is surrounded by forested hills between Lore Lindu National Park and a conservation forest. They recently regained access to the forest, which they depend on for their way…
Kalimantan community maps forest to thwart timber companies
Cleared forest near the village of Tumbang Bahanei in the province of Central Kalimantan. Residents are trying to stop timber companies from encroaching on their land. Photo by Indra Nugraha.…
Sulawesi community vies to maintain rights to forest
Community-maintained forest in Delang District, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photo by Revelation Chandra. "We are treated like criminals caught stealing our own land," M. Basri told Mongabay-Indonesia. The acting village head…
Palm oil threatens community forest in Central Kalimantan
Community-maintained forest in Delang District, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photo by Indra Nugraha. Delang district is different than many parts of Central Kalimantan. Namely, on the drive in from Nangabulik, you…
Traditional farming technique preserves soil, forest in Kalimantan
A kekalik fruit tree grows in a "dahas" agroforestry plot in West Kalimantan. Photo by Andi Fachrizal. The road winds five kilometers through a thick canopy of trees before ending…
Coffee farmers help protect Flores forest
Forest surrounding the Wata Ata region in Flores, Indonesia. Photo by Anton Muhajir. Located on the slopes of Inerie Mountain on the island of Flores in Indonesia, farmers in Bajawa…
Special series
Forest trackers
- Solomon Islands environmental defender faces life sentence for arson charge
- Threatened species caught in crossfire of ongoing land conflict in Myanmar
- Under cover of COVID-19, loggers plunder Cambodian wildlife sanctuary
- Brazilian Amazon protected areas ‘in flames’ as land-grabbers invade
Oceans
- ‘Tamper with nature, and everyone suffers’: Q&A with ecologist Enric Sala
- New paper highlights spread of organized crime from global fisheries
- Study: Chinese ‘dark fleets’ illegally defying sanctions by fishing in North Korean waters
- Game changer? Antarctic ice melt related to tropical weather shifts: Study
Amazon conservation
- Could disruptions in meat supply relieve pressure on the Amazon? (commentary)
- Brazil moves toward transfer of deforestation and fire monitoring to military
- As the Amazon burns, what happens to its biodiversity?
- Game changer: NASA data tool could revolutionize Amazon fire analysis
Endangered environmentalists
- Indonesian fishers opposed to dredging project hit by ‘criminalization’ bid
- Life as an Amazon activist: ‘I don’t want to be the next Dorothy Stang’
- In Philippines’ Palawan, top cop linked to assault on environmental officer
- Deaths, arrests and protests as Philippines re-emerges from lockdown
Indonesias forest guardians
- Why I stand for my tribe’s forest: It gives us food, culture, and life (commentary)
- Reforesting a village in Indonesia, one batch of gourmet beans at a time
- Restoring Sumatra’s Leuser Ecosystem, one small farm at a time
- Indigenous Iban community defends rainforests, but awaits lands rights recognition
Conservation effectiveness
- Failure in conservation projects: Everyone experiences it, few record it
- On a wing and a prayer? Evidence for ways to conserve bats (commentary)
- Audio: The sounds of a rare New Zealand bird reintroduced to its native habitat
- Eavesdrop on forest sounds to effectively monitor biodiversity, researchers say
Southeast asian infrastructure
- Paper giant APP’s Sumatran road project cuts through elephant habitat
- Study revealing New Guinea’s plant life ‘first step’ toward protection
- Indonesian case highlights potential for long-term harms of corruption
- Indonesia approves coal road project through forest that hosts tigers, elephants
