Easy Steps to Help Protecting Indonesia’s Forest

Indonesia's forest is rapidly disappearing. During 2009-2013, Indonesia lost 4.6 million hectares of forest; similar to the size of West Sumatra province, or 7 times the size of the Capital Region of Jakarta (Forest Watch Indonesia). Just imagine, every minute forest coverage the size of 3 football field are gone! Indonesia's remaining forest now is estimated to be around 82 million hectares only, and will continue shrinking if we don't do anything about it.

Forest protection effort requires active participation from all walks of life, not only from people who live near the forests, the government, or concerned organization like PROFAUNA.

There are many easy stuff that we can do, although we live in the cities fa away from forests. Even if we do n't have proper knowledge in forestry. Here are some steps we can take:

• Use less paper

Yes, paper and tissue are roduced from certain trees which are planted in production forest. but we have to note that to provide the land for the production forest, the company will have to clear natural forests first. The more we use paper/tissue, the more natural forest will be cut down to fulfill the demand.

We have some tips on how you can reduce your paper use:

• Minimize using products containing palm oil

Similar to paper/tissue, it takes lots of natural forest to be cleared in order to create a palm oil plantation. To make it worse, once a on land oil palm has been planted , it becomes impossible to be reforested as oil palm is a 'greedy' plant; it depletes all the nutrients in the soil. Coconut oil is a great substitutem as not only it's more eco-friendly, but it also has more health benefits!

• Watch your fire

When you go to a forest and light a fire (for instance you make a bonfire, or cook outdoor), before leaving the location please make sure that the fire has completely gone off, so that you will not cause a wildfire. If you smoke, don't dispose of your cigarette butt just anywhere. Keep it in a trashbag until you can find a proper bin.

• Don't Kill Wildlife

Many wildlife species act as seed disperser in the forest. among those species are monkeys, orangutans, birds, bats, civets, squirels, and many others. If their population declines due to poaching and trade, the forest ecosystem will be disrupted. The trees' seed dispersal and forest growth will be screwed up.

• Take part in reforestation

If you come across a group who does reforestation activities in a damaged forest, sign yourself up! Do reforestation in the right way, by planting trees that suits the location, climate, and altitute. Last but not least, make sure that the trees receive good treatment in the future. So many people have planted trees and left the trees without sustainable care, and the trees eventually died. Do not join reforestation activities which are held just for ceremonial or exhibitionistic purpose.

• Join organizations who work for forest protection

Joining organizations who work for forest protection will bring lots of benefits. Choose organizations who gives you opportunities to volunteer in real-life projects, such as PROFAUNA. By joining PROFAUNA, you can get a chance to be involved in various activities related to forest protection, including being a member of Ranger team.

• Spread the words!

Sharing messages about forest protection to the people around you is very easy yet helpful to raise the public's awareness towards the importance of forest, you can alsi visit schools, universities, and communities to educate the members about forest protection. PROFAUNA provides educational package that you can use for your educational program, and it's FREE.

For further info, please contact us at: profauna@profauna.net