Extra Good News: Planet Indonesia and the Biodiversity Challenge Fund

We are pleased to announce that Yayasan Planet Indonesia is the latest recipient of the Darwin Extra Initiative, a UK government grants scheme that helps to protect biodiversity and the natural environment through locally based projects worldwide.

With this support, we are seeking to scale up the model - the roadmap of which is detailed in our recently published, five-year strategic plan - that we have developed over the past seven years to advance the rights of Indigenous people and local communities, improve socio-economic conditions, and conserve biodiversity with community partners across West Kalimantan and Sumatra.

Deputy Project Leader and CEO of YPI, Novia Sagita, said:

“In Southeast Asia, Indonesia is at the center of the interconnectedness of Indigenous rights, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Drawing on the wealth of knowledge on rights-based approaches as well as our team’s decades of experience in implementing community-based conservation programs, our project looks to implement one of the largest IPLCs recognition projects ever undertaken in Sumatra and Borneo. We are grateful for the Darwin Extra award and their crucial support in addressing the underlying drivers of biodiversity and cultural loss, helping communities make their vision for a better future a reality.”


Over the next four years, through the support of this grant, we will be protecting 1,250,000+ hectares of tropical forests and their wild inhabitants, such as the critically endangered Bornean Orangutan, Helmeted hornbill, Sunda Pangolin, Sumatran Elephant, and the endangered Abbot Gibbons, Irrawaddy River Dolphin, and Proboscis Monkey among others.

However, the true implementors of this work at the Indigenous People and Local Communities that live in these areas. We simply facilitate the process, aiming to create the enabling conditions to effectively engage locally-led conservation solutions.

In the next four years, we expect to see the following positive changes for

40 communities
in West Kalimantan and Bengkulu, Sumatra

Improved access and rights to natural resources.

  • Establishment of community governance institutions and support for best practices.

  • Improved access to free healthcare, healthcare education, and literacy services.

  • Improved access to financial services and livelihood opportunities.

  • Reduced threats to biodiversity and sustainable resource use.

  • Improved surveillance and reduced biodiversity loss through SMART patrols.


Over time, the cumulative effect of these outcomes is poised to bring about profound and lasting social, economic, and institutional transformations. Through the legal recognition and protection of the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities across Indonesia, coupled with reduced socio-economic insecurities, IPLCs will be empowered to actively participate in the management of natural resources. This inclusive governance approach, managed by IPLCs themselves, will foster sustainable resource management while decreasing biodiversity loss. Moreover, establishing resilient livelihoods will enhance communities' adaptive capacity to address the challenges posed by climate change. Lastly, improving healthcare and education services will contribute to community well-being and alleviate ongoing pressures on at-risk ecosystems. Together, these holistic developments and conservation actions signify a promising future of progress and harmony for the people and wildlife of Indonesia.

This work will be done in collaboration with our partner in Sumatra, the AKAR Foundation.

 

Round 30 of the Darwin Initiative is now open.
You can see the Darwin Initiative Round 30 Announcement and our project highlight on the Darwin Initiative website.

Yayasan Planet Indonesia is committed to transparency. See a list of our supporters and our latest financial statements.

 

If you have any questions, please reach out via admin@planetindonesia.org. Sign up for our newsletter and follow us on our social media Facebook here and Instagram here to get timely updates on our activities, an insider’s look into the lives of front-line conservationists, and ongoing programs.

Josephine Crouchfunding, biodiversity, community development, media page 2Comment