JP\/13\/ENVIRO<\/p>\n
Benefits Beyond Boundaries and Crisis Within
\nA Review of Indonesia's Conservation Efforts in 2003<\/p>\n
Reed Merrill
\nContributor
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesia is known around the world for its rich and beautiful
\nnatural heritage. And, sadly, the country is also known for the
\nrapid degradation of this natural heritage.<\/p>\n
Since the beginning of the multidimensional political and
\neconomic crisis that started in 1997, the rate of environmental
\ndamage has sky-rocketed.<\/p>\n
All too regularly, we here new stories about the atrocities of
\nillegal logging, floods and landslides linked to environmental
\ndegradation, and the trade in endangered animals, either for pets
\nor for food.<\/p>\n
Especially as Indonesia sorts out the rules of the game for an
\nambitious decentralization program, and while laws and polices
\nare enforced in an unclear and inequitable manner, trends of
\nenvironmental degradation are expected to continue.<\/p>\n
Real progress in sustainable natural resources management and
\nnature conservation rests on a more stable political and policy
\nenvironment. Things are more stable today than a few years ago.
\nHopefully this trend will pick-up momentum after the 2004
\nelections.<\/p>\n
Fifth World Parks Congress<\/p>\n
2003 was an important year for conservation, both for
\nIndonesia and around the world. The year was marked by the Fifth
\nWorld Parks Congress, held in September, in Durban, South Africa.<\/p>\n
This once-in-a-decade event brought together 3,600
\nconservationists from around the world to assess trends and plan
\nfor the future of effective protected areas management. The main
\nmessage of the congress was the need for protected areas to
\nprovide benefits beyond boundaries.<\/p>\n
This was an important message for the fifty-plus Indonesian
\ndelegates to the Congress. Conservationists know that it is not
\nenough to lock away protected areas, and to manage them in
\nisolation of broader development initiatives and community
\naspirations.<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, with the increasing power of local government,
\ntheir primary focus on economic development, and increasing
\nthreats to Protected Areas, it has become clear that the last
\nhope for conservation rests in balancing conservation and
\ndevelopment. In Indonesia, conservation can only be effective if
\nit provides benefits beyond park boundaries.<\/p>\n
Collaborative management<\/p>\n
The conservation movement in Indonesia has recognized the
\nimportance of providing benefits beyond boundaries for a number
\nof years. To achieve this, there has been a growing trend toward
\ncollaborative management. Collaborative management provides an
\nintegrated approach to conservation of protected areas.<\/p>\n
Management is not kept in the hands of a single government
\nagency. Rather, on a site-specific basis, park management
\nidentifies and then facilitates partnerships with a range of park
\nstakeholders.<\/p>\n
Stakeholders can be local government agencies, NGOs, community
\norganizations, universities and the private sector. While they
\nvary from park to park, stakeholders share an interest in the
\nconservation management of a protected area as well as a degree
\nof capacity to contribute toward this.<\/p>\n
Over the past few years, international and national NGOs, as
\nwell as a number of donor projects, have worked with the Ministry
\nof Forestry and local stakeholders to develop effective field
\ninitiatives in collaborative management.<\/p>\n
From Bali Barat to Bunaken, and from Kayan Mentarang to
\nKomodo, a suite of site-specific collaborative management
\ninitiatives have blossomed.<\/p>\n
With the demonstrated success of collaborative management,
\n2003 provided a benchmark in providing policy support for this
\nnew conservation paradigm. With a policy shift from closed access
\nto regulated open access, the Ministry of Forestry instructed all
\nnational park managers to establish collaborative management
\nforums.<\/p>\n
This is a crucial step towards providing benefits beyond
\nboundaries, as this policy integrates conservation of parks in
\nthe broader context of regional development.<\/p>\n
Local protected areas<\/p>\n
2003 also saw the emergence of locally-designated protected
\nareas. From Aru to Derawan, a number of regents from across the
\ncountry are exploring ways to gazette local protected areas in
\norder to boost tourism opportunities or protect important areas
\nof locally-significant natural heritage.<\/p>\n
Again, we see the theme of benefits beyond boundaries. While
\nthere is a diversity in the kinds of protected areas being
\ndesignated at the local level, they share a key objective:
\nconserving a park so the broader economic benefits can be enjoyed
\nby the public.<\/p>\n
The country currently lacks a clear policy framework to
\nsupport the designation and management of locally-gazetted
\nprotected areas. But with increased demand by local government
\nagencies, and with the support of local conservation community,
\nit is likely that this movement will increase pace in coming
\nyears.<\/p>\n
Marine protected areas networks<\/p>\n
Indonesia's conservation movement also made significant
\nstrides in marine protected areas (MPA) management in 2003.<\/p>\n
Again, this is driven by the clear link between economic
\nbenefits with effective conservation management. Driven by
\ndecreased fish catch and the recognition of the need to enhance
\nthe livelihoods of those living in coastal communities, progress
\nhas been made to strengthen an integrated MPA system.<\/p>\n
A national-level working group of government officials, with
\nNGO and donor project technical support, is working on a state of
\nthe art MPA system and strategy for Indonesia. For the first
\ntime, a network that integrates large, nationally-managed MPAs
\nwith small, locally-managed MPAs is being established.<\/p>\n
With the commitment of local communities, local governments
\nand national government agencies, this MPA network can
\ndemonstrate to Indonesia and the world that MPA conservation can
\nresult in increased economic development.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead<\/p>\n
Tragically, 2003 brought witness to the price of ignoring
\nconservation. On Nov. 2, some 239 people lost their lives and
\nhundreds more were made homeless when floods devastated Bahorok
\ntown, Langkat regency, in Gunung Leuser National Park. While we
\nstill try to understand the cause of this disaster, it acts as a
\nwake-up call to all of us.<\/p>\n
Our long-term well-being hinges on balancing sustainable use
\nof natural resources with conservation of our protected areas.
\nEspecially sad is that this disaster happened within a National
\nPark. This tragedy must act as a wake-up call to all of us, and
\ndrive us to more effectively integrate economic development with
\nconservation of our natural heritage.<\/p>\n
Positively, 2003 closed with global recognition of Indonesia's
\nefforts to balance conservation and economic development. In
\nDecember, British Airways announced that Bunaken National Park
\nwon the prestigious Tourism for Tomorrow award.<\/p>\n
Selected as grand prize winner from more than seventy entries
\nfrom around the world, the Tourism for Tomorrow award recognizes
\nBunaken's success in integrating conservation of the park with
\nimproving local livelihoods and contributing to the local
\neconomy.<\/p>\n
Significantly, Bunaken won this global award by demonstrating
\nto the world that conservation can produce benefits beyond
\nboundaries.<\/p>\n
Conservation is and will remain a challenge in Indonesia. Its
\nsuccess is crucial to the long-term sustainable growth of the
\ncountry. This requires mainstreaming of conservation into
\ndevelopment planning.<\/p>\n
It also requires a stable political and policy field from
\nwhich to grow. A new conservation paradigm has emerged. Let's
\nhope we still have time to make it work.<\/p>\n
The author is an advisor to the USAID's Natural Resources
\nManagement Project Protected Areas & Agriculture<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jp13enviro-1447899208",
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