Palangka Raya, Tuesday (04/05/2021) – High quality seedling care during the early stages of reforestation is an essential element for the success of restoring forest ecosystems, as well as being a beneficial skill for local community members to have to improve economic prosperity. Therefore, for the successful recovery of the Sebangau National Park peat swamp forest ecosystem through the one million trees program, the Borneo Nature Foundation (BNF) provides nursery training for members of the Community Nursery (CN).
In collaboration with the Kahayan BNF Watershed and Protected Forest Management Agency (BPDASHL), BNF held further training on the Management of Peat Swamp Forest Plant Nursery Techniques on Wednesday 31st March 2021. The training was held at the Kahayan Permanent Nursery (BPDASHL), Tumbang Nusa Village, Jabiren Raya District, Pulang Pisau Regency, Central Kalimantan.
BNF Nursery Officer Koesmyadi explained that this activity was carried out to increase the capacity of CN members so that they could learn how to produce good seeds, especially for the One Million Trees planting program in the context of restoring the ecosystem in Sebangau National Park.
“In the permanent BPDASHL Kahayan seedling nursery, local plant seeds are well maintained. BNF is working together with BPDASHL Kahayan to increase the number of seeds to be planted, “said Koesmyadi.
One Million Trees is a collaboration between the Sebangau National Park Agency (BTNS), the Center for International Cooperation in Sustainable Management of Tropical Peatland (CIMTROP) at University of Palangka Raya, and BNF. Through this partnership, the three parties agreed to plant one million trees in stages over five years in the burned peat swamp forest area of Sebangau National Park. The planting is part of an effort to realize the Ministry of Environment and Forestry’s (KLHK) program objectives, namely restoring the ecosystem in the national park which covers an area of approximately 600,000 hectares.
Koesmyadi added, for this year’s planting program, the BPDASHL Kahayan permanent nursery will help produce 12,500 local plant seeds to meet reforestation needs. In addition to conducting training to increase the capacity of CN members, BNF has also established new CNs to accelerate and scale-up the number of seedlings grown for the One Million Trees program over the next five years, as well as maximizing the community empowerment .”We just established a new CN in Sabaru, with mostly women housewives as members. It is hoped that this can help improve economic prospects of local women, most of whom only work at home,” he added.
Currently, BNF has coached as many as six CNs in Kereng Bangkirai and Sabaru Kelurahan, Sebangau District, Palangka Raya City. Two CN groups have also recently been formed and are still in the preparation stages of starting activities.
“We are very happy and interested in participating in this training, to increase our knowledge on how to select and maintain local plant seeds that will be planted in forests. As well as restoring the forest, this program also adds to my income as a housewife, ” said Rosna, a mother of four children.
Rosna said, since her husband died in 2011, she has relied on her husband’s pension money and has had to work very hard to support her four children. Since becoming a member of CN Sabaru, the
“Being a CN member has improved my financial situation enough to support my family.Besides that, I am also taking part in protecting and preserving the forest that is the legacy of my ancestors, so that my children and grandchildren can feel the benefits in the future,” added the former Tsanawiyah madrasa teacher.
Rosna also gave her children the knowledge of the importance of the existence of the forest, so that one day they can still see wild animals that live in the forest without having to go to the zoo. The forest is also a place to find food and traditional medicines that have been passed down from their ancestors.
The Sebangau National Park peat forest ecosystem restoration program was organized with support from The Keeling Curve Prize, Uplink / Trillion Trees, Arcus Foundation, Christmas Tree World, Darwin Initiative, Disney Conservation Fund, Eurofins Foundation, Forest Smoothie, Foundation Franklinia, Global Wildlife Conservation (GWC), Orangutan Appeal UK (OAUK), Orangutan Conservancy, Orangutan Outreach, RRC EA Wetlands, and The Orangutan Project (TOP).
Notes to the Editors
1. Borneo Nature Foundation is a not-for-profit conservation and research organisation based in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. BNF works to protect some of the most important areas of tropical rainforest and to safeguard the wildlife, environment, and indigenous culture in Kalimantan. www.borneonaturefoundation.org
2. If you require a copy of the photos, please email [email protected] Please ensure all images are fully credited.
Contact information
Yohanes Prahara, Content Creator and Media Liaison, Borneo Nature Foundation
E-mail: [email protected] • Website: www.borneonaturefoundation.org • Facebook: www.facebook.com/BorneoNature.Fdn • Twitter: www.twitter.com/BorneoNature • Instagram: www.instagram.com/borneo.nature • Postal address: Borneo Nature Foundation, Jalan Bukit Raya 17, Bukit Raya, Palangka Raya 73112, Kalimantan Tengah, Indonesia.
