Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration to Protect the Rainforest

Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration to Protect the World's Third-Largest Rainforest

Tropical rainforests represent the oldest type of vegetation still existing on Earth. However, tropical rainforests continue to evolve and change, so modern tropical rainforests differ from those of the past. Tropical rainforests grow in three main regions: the Malesian botanical subkingdom, which stretches from Myanmar (Burma) to Fiji and includes all of Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, parts of Indochina, and tropical Australia; tropical South and Central America, particularly the Amazon Basin; and West and Central Africa. The largest tropical rainforest is in Brazil, where the Amazon Rainforest covers over 2.3 million square miles or 6 million square kilometers. The second-largest is the Republic of Congo, with the Congo Basin rainforest spanning 1.4 million square miles or 3.7 million square kilometers. Indonesia ranks third with a tropical rainforest area of 12.6 million hectares. Additionally, Indonesia ranks second in biodiversity scoring with a score of 0.614, hosting 25 percent of the world’s fish species, including 3,429 marine fish species and 39 percent of coral fish species. Of these, 120 species are recorded as endemic. Moreover, Indonesia’s coral reefs cover 14 percent of the world’s coral reefs, consisting of 596 coral species. Indonesia is also home to 17 percent of global bird species, 16 percent of amphibians and reptiles, 15 percent of insects, 12 percent of mammals, and 10 percent of flowering plants.

The Conservation Action Network (CAN) focuses on protecting forests and conserving wildlife in Indonesia while supporting indigenous rights to manage forests sustainably. To achieve its biodiversity conservation goals, CAN collaborates with multiple stakeholders in Indonesia, from village-level governments to the central government. CAN also partners with local universities for research and development activities. To fulfill its mission, CAN employs a system of Save, Restore, Protect, and Sustain. This four-rule model forms CAN's framework for ensuring the achievement of goals for each project, which is only possible through collaboration with multiple stakeholders.

Behind CAN's Conservation Mission

Conflicts between wildlife and humans continue to occur, and many wildlife species are in need of help. Unfortunately, wildlife rescue centers in Kalimantan focus solely on orangutans, often leaving other wildlife neglected or ending up in zoos. CAN recognizes the importance of continuing to rescue wildlife that has strayed from its habitat and therefore believes that rescue efforts must be accompanied by appropriate care. In 2020, CAN decided to establish a wildlife rescue center in Merasa Village, Kelay Sub-district, Berau Regency, with the hope of providing a facility to care for wildlife in need. After the care process, CAN realized that a safer forest was necessary for these animals to prevent future conflicts. To ensure a safe release area, CAN decided to collaborate with local communities to protect conservation areas, village forests, and other high-value conservation areas, making them safe habitats for wildlife migration and food sources.

Eighty percent of protected wildlife is outside conservation areas, making the potential for conflict very high. On the other hand, CAN understands that stopping wildlife-human conflicts cannot be achieved by rescue alone, as the source of the problem remains unaddressed or unresolved. It’s like mopping a wet floor while the water tap filling the tank is left open, causing continuous spills. CAN aims to reduce the water source and gradually close the tap. Therefore, one approach is to build partnerships with communities for restoration activities using agroforestry concepts. This provides economic value to people through planted forests and creates natural habitats or corridors for wildlife.

However, CAN realizes that encouraging local communities to protect forests and rescue wildlife would be futile without direct economic or ecological impacts. Thus, one of CAN’s programs focuses on strengthening communities through non-timber forest products, such as eco-tourism, sustainable agriculture, irrigation development, and the production of coffee, chocolate, and other products. These activities help drive economic change in the surrounding communities and promote behavioral changes in forest conversion practices, leading to ecological improvements in the forest areas around the project sites.

Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration in Multi-Project Landscapes

To achieve its conservation mission, CAN believes that it cannot work alone because wildlife does not recognize administrative or coordination boundaries; they continuously roam in search of suitable habitats. Changes in landscapes due to forest conversion to meet global consumption needs have led to significant alterations in wildlife habitats. For example, orangutans that once lived in riverine or valley forests are now increasingly found in karst mountains. Some wildlife, such as proboscis monkeys, gibbons, pangolins, and sun bears, now inhabit small fragmented forests in plantations and only venture out to find food. Conversely, many agricultural and plantation areas now serve as food sources or even new habitats for wildlife. Government-designated conservation areas have become refuges for wildlife, leading many animals to encroach on human settlements as their original forests can no longer provide food or shelter.

This challenge can only be addressed through multi-stakeholder collaboration with shared goals. Local communities, as those directly interacting with wildlife, must promote sustainable agriculture and strengthen harmony with wildlife to prevent harm or killing when animals enter human settlements. Companies responsible for forest conversion must establish interconnected conservation areas within their concessions. Meanwhile, the government must implement regulations that balance the interests of local communities, companies, and the need for healthy ecosystems for wildlife, creating harmony among all parties.

Long Sam Wildlife Rescue Center

The Ministry of Environment and Forestry, through the East Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Center, collaborates with CAN to manage the Long Sam Wildlife Rescue Center (WRC). Located on the Long Sam River in Merasa Village, Kelay Sub-district, Berau Regency, East Kalimantan Province, the WRC focuses on rescuing small primates, birds, and other protected mammals. Established in 2020, the WRC aims to assist in the care of wildlife before their release or transfer to other rehabilitation centers. It addresses the growing need for wildlife assistance, particularly medical care. To carry out this mission, the team is divided into two groups: the rescue team and the wildlife care team, each with distinct responsibilities. The rescue team handles wildlife in need of assistance; if the animals require medical care or additional intervention, they are brought to the WRC. However, if no further treatment is needed, they are directly released into conservation forests. The care team manages the WRC to ensure the animals remain healthy and are prepared for release into the wild. We strive to rehabilitate protected wildlife and return them to their natural habitats. However, some animals, raised as pets before arriving at the WRC, have experienced mental disturbances and cannot be released. Additionally, some individuals have physical disabilities that prevent their release into the wild. This year, the rescue team saved 54 protected wildlife, of which 18 required care at the rescue center due to their poor health or unsuitability for release. We are currently caring for various species rescued this year, including orangutans, siamang gibbons, monkeys, sun bears, eagles, wild cats, crocodiles, turtles, and several other animals.

Forest Landscape Protection

CAN recognizes that protecting forests cannot be achieved by just one or two parties alone, as each area has different functions and statuses according to the regulations of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Therefore, CAN collaborates with multiple stakeholders across the Menyapa Lesan, Sangkulirang Mangkalihat, and Sungai Sambas landscapes. Each landscape has unique biodiversity that must be preserved.

The Sangkulirang Mangkalihat landscape is a primary forest area with a long history and karst mountains. This region is notable for being surrounded by mountains that were inhabited by prehistoric humans, with 240 rock art images scattered across cave ceilings. Archaeologists have found evidence that these early humans lived in the caves. The karst ecosystem features hilly terrain, steep cliffs, and underground caves. One interesting find is the Tewet cave, which is about 40,000 years old based on radiocarbon dating. This highlights the area's significant conservation and cultural value. The region covers 1.8 million hectares, with 403,151.89 hectares designated as geological protection areas and 167,000 hectares as protected forests. It is home to 120 bird species, 200 arthropod species, including insects, 300 plant species, and 50 fish species, as well as around 300 orangutans (Forina Report 2016). The Sangkulirang Mangkalihat landscape is of high conservation value, containing forests, endemic Kalimantan wildlife, and historical significance.

The Menyapa Lesan landscape, covering 180,000 hectares, also includes many companies, including those involved in forest conversion. Unlike Sangkulirang Mangkalihat, the Menyapa Lesan landscape serves as a wildlife corridor stretching 40 km, splitting across timber and palm oil plantations to connect the Lesan and Menyapa Protected Forests via the Lesan and Kelay Rivers. This area is home to 49 bird species and 51 mammal species, including 185 individual orangutans. Within this landscape, there are 2 protected forests covering 63,000 hectares and 6 village forests covering 2,300 hectares. The Menyapa Lesan and Sangkulirang Mangkalihat landscapes support 12 villages, 2 sub-districts, and 1 city in providing water sources for local communities and contribute approximately 240 million tons of carbon absorption globally.

The Sungai Sambas landscape consists of mangrove and peat swamp forests covering 96,000 hectares. It plays a crucial role in protecting 15 bird species, 9 mammal species, and 18 freshwater fish species. Additionally, the mangrove and peat swamp ecosystems support more than 2 sub-districts, where the local communities rely heavily on rivers and the sea for their livelihoods. Some communities have also established ponds in the peat and coastal areas, making the conservation of mangroves and peatlands vital in collaboration with the communities in the Sungai Sambas landscape.

CAN collaborates with communities, governments, and other private entities by establishing Multi-Stakeholder Forums in two different landscapes. These forums allow stakeholders to directly contribute to biodiversity conservation while respecting each other's rights and responsibilities. This includes placing forest rangers in conservation areas, partnering with local communities to manage village forests, encouraging concession holders to maintain and protect their conservation areas connected to the existing landscapes. CAN and the government also actively conduct outreach to schools, communities, and companies, as well as routine patrols in areas with potential damage. Additionally, CAN works with various parties to strengthen community capacity for sustainable resource management by developing eco-tourism in villages like Merasa, Lesan Dayak, Merabu, Sidobangen, Sungai Baru, Patok, Sintang, and Laung. CAN also collaborates with communities to create marketable chocolate and coffee products and initiates sustainable shrimp and fish farming in these villages.

To ensure these efforts are effective and sustainable, CAN advocates for binding regulations for all activities, including integrating landscape areas with provincial and district spatial plans and land use at the village level. It also ensures that buyers of produced goods are directly connected to the communities and provides training to enhance community skills in managing and developing natural resources sustainably. CAN is also involved in law enforcement efforts to deter environmental crime.

Forest Restoration

For the past three years, CAN has been engaged in forest restoration, achieving a total area of 1,328 hectares by planting over 1.5 million trees. These restoration efforts are located in various sites tailored to the specific needs of each area, employing different concepts based on the location and objectives of the restoration. CAN supports various types of restoration, including high mountain forest restoration, peatland restoration, mangrove restoration, and coral restoration. In these activities, CAN collaborates with local governments and communities living in the areas to carry out restoration and monitoring.

The restoration sites are spread across several landscapes, such as in East Kalimantan's Menyapa Lesan, Wehea Kelay, Derawan Islands, and Segah Labanan landscapes. In Central Kalimantan, CAN focuses on social forestry areas such as the Masorayan Community Forest and the Sekonyer River buffer zone. In West Kalimantan, CAN targets areas affected by gold mining and burned peatlands in Jawai and Jemelak. Each location presents its own challenges, but CAN's success rate in restoration is on average between 87% and 93% for each site.

Multi-Stakeholder Support

To achieve environmental conservation goals, CAN receives support from various parties, including the central government, such as the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, provincial governments like the Provincial Forestry Office, and district governments such as the Forest Management Unit where CAN operates. Equally important, CAN also receives financial support from conservation-focused organizations, such as Fans for Nature. Such support is crucial as it forms the foundation for field activities, including wildlife rescue, care, and release, as well as establishing nurseries and planting trees.

This support has led to the rescue of hundreds of wildlife, the planting of thousands of trees, the creation of hundreds of hectares of new habitats for wildlife, the protection of thousands of hectares of tropical forest, and the improvement of the economy for hundreds of local families living near forests. It also has significant ecological impacts on wildlife conservation in Indonesia and supports global warming mitigation efforts.