Support 13 villages to save the Bornean Rainforest

As 2020 comes to a close we reflect on a challenging but powerful year. We have worked with thousands of families to distribute covid-19 related relief, renew conservation agreements, and build sustainable pathways for communities to manage natural resources during a time of crisis. 

Climate change, social and economic inequalities, biodiversity loss, and food insecurity are major global challenges faced by human societies across the world’s tropics. Many approaches used to address these multi-dimensional challenges have been one-sided in nature. Evidence suggests that such ‘siloed’ approaches have largely failed due to creating adverse trade-offs affecting some stakeholders more than others . The COVID-19 global pandemic highlights the need for innovative solutions to these challenges - restoring the integrity of social-ecological systems. Our Holistic community-based conservation (CBC) offers opportunities in producing positive outcomes across multiple sectors, and could represent a potential solution to building social-ecological resilience.

During this crisis, we continue to engage locally-led solutions to improve human well-being and conserve at-risk ecosystems. Our rights-based approach creates the enabling conditions that allows for Indigenous and Rural Communities to sustainable manage natural resources that underpin local livelihoods.

Our organization is unique in that we address the underlying drivers of biodiversity loss, not the symptopms. Our community-led solutions have shown to both reduce socio-economic inequalities, improve human well-being, reduce deforestation, and stabilize populations of the some of the world's rarest species. The holistic approach deployed by Planet Indonesia utilizes a systems approach to create long-lasting sustainable change.

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The COVID-19 global pandemic highlights the necessity of integrated cross-sector community-led approaches to conservation. There is an urgent need for far-sighted solutions to create systemic change to prevent further environmental loss, support fair and resilient livelihoods for millions, and prevent future outbreaks from unregulated and illegal wildlife trade.

Planet Indonesia's holistic approach has never been more important. Our needs-based model ensures rights and security, delivers financial and non-financial services that catalyze ecosystem stewardship, and supports democratic village-led governance. We have been working tirelessly for years to support communities in creating more equitable and sustainable relationships with nature, which underpins all human well-being and global health. 

While the impacts of this virus are far spreading, the poor and vulnerable will continue bearing the costs long after the virus is gone. While in some 'developed' industrialized countries a glimmer of hope has been the return of wildlife and blue skies, in the global south, where the majority of the world's biodiversity exists, a different situation unfolds.

Supply chain collapse and the socio-economic shock of losing one's livelihoods often causes individuals to turn to the exploitation of resources, the only survival option for millions around the globe. Shelter-in-place or work-from-home simply are not options for millions of subsistence farmers, fishermen, and rural producers.

We have been arguing for years that the social and economic hardships faced by rural communities need to be central to conservation efforts, and fuel a global movement. Furthermore, our ex-situ Wak Gatak Conservation Program was created to reverse the negative impacts of wildlife trafficking on both biodiversity and society in tandem with Planet Indonesia's community-based approach.

Our team has been working tirelessly to continue conversations and efforts to combat unregulated illegal wildlife trade, the source of several global pandemics including COVID-19.

Our empowerment team is working non-stop through our flagship Conservation Cooperative  approach to provide low interest loans and conditional cash transfers for those most impacted by COVID-19. Over the next few months we aim to provide financial support to some 7,500 rural farmers, fishermen, and rural producers.

Our community partners have expressed concerns over land grabs and resource battles and have requested to continue local community-led patrols. Our Conservation Cooperative approach provides the infrastructure to support these via the community revolving fund managed by each cooperative. 

This global pandemic highlights the need for bold transformational action on a global scale. For us, that starts and finishes with a commitment to community.

We need your support to continue delivering transformational solutions for people and nature.

Links:

• Check out our new website for our ex-situ conservation programs!