To support The Heartland Project, we have built a place to store and nurse the seedlings called Polo Green House, named after our deceased rescued dog. There are over 3,000 seedlings stored in the green house every month to be planted through The Heartland Project.
Starting with calls for applications, seven young leaders were selected as fellows. The workshop was designed for indigenous youth ages 17-30, and it covers a variety of topics related to technology and indigenous community, including AI, technology for digital advocacy and social change, and technology for forest restoration and conservation.
Untuk merayakan hari jadi Ranu Welum Foundation yang ke-9, kami mengundang para pemuda pembawa gerakan perubahan untuk turut berpartisipasi dalam kegiatan Workshop Pemuda Adat & Teknologi!
"It is my first time stepping foot in a peatland ecosystem and also my first experience joining the tree planting movement. I'm happy to do a good thing to protect my forest", said Sasa, a junior high school student and also the youngest volunteer.
To find the most efficient and user-friendly organic insecticides, the Youth Act team conducted an experiment to extract peptides from natural substances in our greenhouse. Our goal is to provide organic pesticide training to female farmers in the Talekoi area, and this experiment is the first step toward that end.
"What a treasure," Ibu Devi said. With her help, and some children who were playing nearby the library, we organized the books per category in the selves. We divided the books in 2 shelves, one for the adult's books, and another one for the children's books.
The kids practiced Bahalai dance every weekend. The Bahalai dance is usually performed to welcome guests and express gratitude for productive lands and farms.
Robust forest monitoring is essential for long-term conservation management. We have been employing numerous techniques and equipment to monitor our forests, including ground-based surveys and patrols. This time, we use drones to draw a map of our peat forest in Tangkiling, which is also in the process of establishment to be a Youth Ecology Center.
Biodiesel made from vegetable oils is promoted as a way to cut down on carbon emissions, but it actually speeds up deforestation in Kalimantan. "Both coal mining and palm plantation for biodiesel have caused enormous impacts on the environment and our people,” said Sumarni.
"Knowing the topography and climate of the area is crucial before attempting to extinguish forest fires. We need to know the location of deep peat and wild animals. This is due to the fact that most forest fires happen in inaccessible areas of the forest. And local people know best about this, we also have our unique wisdom and tradition in managing the fire", said Jiansyah.
Interview with the theme "Character of Caring for the Environment and Mitigation of Flood Disasters" lasted about 30 minutes. In the conversation, Andi explained what the Kalimantan Youth Act was and what were its activities. The main focus of the conversation was the relief mission activities carried out by the Kalimantan Youth Act team regarding the flooding that occurred.
This year, Sei Pinang village in Kapuas regency has been flooded several times, sickening many villagers, particularly the elderly and children. To help the villagers, we organized a volunteer medical team to provide free medical services.
Chief of the women group, Lelianti, showed the ginger she planted two months ago in poly bag contained soils mixed with manure. It grows very well. “I hope women in this village can grow ginger and other spices plants in their homes. it will helps providing us with our need for cooking.”
Over the last two years, we've done a lot of trial and error to be able to plant ironwood trees. Because the site was too hot, the first tree we planted last year died. However, after learning from that failure, we developed a strategy for planting ironwood and native Kalimantan trees. The area where we currently planted the trees were deep in the forest but we chose the spot with enough sunlight and less grass or other plants. It turned out a success.
The screening and discussion which was held on 29th October 2022 moderated by Muhammad Andi with Liana from Garda Animalia as the main speaker. Liana explained that the film had not been officially launched, and the purpose of this screening and discussion was to get feedback and responses from youth, especially in Central Kalimantan, about the film and the content.
What if you get lost in the jungle without a map, what will you do? Of course, you will do your best to survive. Therefore, to introduce peat forests and also basic survival skills in the jungle, we conducted a survival class: surviving in peat forests.
“I am so happy getting these chili, petai, cinnamon, and soursop seedlings. The seedlings for these fruit trees are not available in this village and are difficult to obtain. Now we get these seedlings, hopefully they can grow, provide us with fruits and even can be sold as additional income for our family.”
On a cloudy afternoon after incessant rain drizzled, our team went to a forest with Talekoi children to plant endemic Kalimantan trees. Some were carrying ironwood tree polybags weighing up to 5 kg.
Currently, we are collaborating with Forest Smoothie and Replant World to plant and track trees. Using a mobile application with a satellite Monitoring System called Tree tracker by Greenstand, we can obtain periodic growth of our trees, which helps us collect valuable data on tree survival rates.
As Ulin itself is a sacred and meaningful tree which is full of cultural values and wisdoms, each tree represents our gratitude toward those who believe in our works to protect Kalimantan forest and fight for indigenous rights.
