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
- Deforestation rises in Colombia’s Chiribiquete National Park as cattle invade
- ‘What other country would do this to its people?’ Cambodian land grab victims seek int’l justice
- Deforestation surge threatens endangered species in Tanintharyi, Myanmar
- Thriving population of endangered monkeys gives hope to conservationists
Oceans
- European tuna boats dump fishing debris in Seychelles waters ‘with impunity’
- Red flag: Predatory European ships help push Indian Ocean tuna to the brink
- Surge in seizures of giant clam shells has Philippine conservationists wary
- Ocean protection scheme can yield ‘triple benefits’ study says
Amazon conservation
- Intimidation of Brazil’s enviro scientists, academics, officials on upswing
- Government inaction prompts voluntary REDD+ carbon credit boom in Brazil
- Study sounds latest warning of rainforest turning into savanna as climate warms
- BlackRock must commit to Indigenous rights — not just climate change (commentary)
Land rights and extractives
- Nearly half the Amazon’s intact forest on Indigenous-held lands: Report
- Pension and endowment funds linked to conflict-plagued oil palm in DRC
- Thailand’s Indigenous Peoples fight for ‘land of our heart’ (commentary)
- Ecuador court orders end to gas flaring by oil industry in Amazon
Endangered environmentalists
- Intimidation of Brazil’s enviro scientists, academics, officials on upswing
- Thailand’s Indigenous Peoples fight for ‘land of our heart’ (commentary)
- Brazilian woman threatened by Amazon loggers wins global human rights award
- Indonesian fishers opposed to dredging project hit by ‘criminalization’ bid
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
- A Malagasy community wins global recognition for saving its lake
- Scientists in Costa Rica are growing new corals to save reefs
- Technology innovations look to change the cacao landscape in Colombia
- In mangrove restoration, custom solutions beat one-size-fits-all approach
Southeast asian infrastructure
- Indonesian governor’s arrest in road project points to more tainted contracts
- Papua deforestation highlights eastward shift of Indonesia forest clearing
- Podcast: Omens and optimism for Sumatran orangutans
- Planned coal-trucking road threatens a forest haven for Sumatran frogs
