One hundred invitations were sent out for the workshop Mitigation of Human-Orangutan Conflicts in Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo. The conference room was booked for a capacity of 80, we didn’t want the room to look empty in case there were a number of ‘no shows’. I watched as the room began to fill, more chairs had to be brought in, numbers were now up to 90, a good start already. There was a stir of anticipation, as everyone took their seats.
The workshop began with opening remarks by myself, the head of BKSDA (Agency for Conservation of Natural Resources) and the Bupati’s (Mayor) office. I welcomed the participants by acknowledging we were at the workshop because we recognised the issues of human – orangutan conflict which affects both orangutans and humans and hoped by the end of the day we would have addressed these problems and have workable recommendations for the future. I used the story of Aan, an orangutan who was shot and badly injured in an oil palm plantation, as the catalyst for the campaign.
The morning was taken up by presentations from: Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil Organization, Forina, National Forum for Corporate Social Responsibility , representatives from Oil Palm plantations and the Ministry of Forestry (PHKA).
In the afternoon the participants broke into two working groups which presented an opportunity for different points of view to be exchanged (of which there were many) and to make recommendations. At this point I don’t believe anyone knew what would come next. As each group presented their finding it became obvious there would be some agreement here. The workshop went far beyond agreement, as the moderator called out the recommendations, there was applause after each one!
Finally it was the moment of the signing. It is one thing to verbally agree, but in Indonesia it is a different matter to put your name to something. At the start of the day no one would have expected to accomplish so much in such a short time. Pak Ade (the moderator) asked, “who will sign?”, slowly one hand was raised and then another, very quickly we realised this was going to be a landmark moment. See the signatories below.
Naturally we had high hopes for the day but this was beyond anyone’s expectations. I closed by thanking all participants (thank you to Rob Stuebing for participating) for their confidence in the Foundation, Yayorin and BKSDA to carry this process forward.
Thank you to The Rufford Foundation for their support and commitment.
Ashley Leiman, Director/Trustee Orangutan Foundation
CONCLUSION
WORKSHOP ON MITIGATION OF CONFLICT BETWEEN HUMAN AND ORANGUTAN IN AND AROUND PALM OIL PLANTATION Pangkalan Bun, June 4, 2013
1. Protect orangutans in the concession area is the company's policy which must be supported by adequate facilities including with an increase in human resources in oil palm plantation (eg the formation of the Task Force) and supported by the Government, in this case Natural Resources Conservation Agency of Central Kalimantan;
2. Agreed to form Communication Forum to follow up Workshop on Human-Orangutan Conflict Mitigation in and around the oil palm plantation which was formed by Natural Resources Conservation Agency of Central Kalimantan, which is facilitated by Orangutan Foundation UK and Yayorin, which consists of plantation companies and related stakeholders;
3. Every company is expected to be able to develop a system on Wildlife Database in the oil palm plantations, which form issued by Natural Resources Conservation Agency of Central Kalimantan;
4. Minutes and Conclusions of the Workshop will be sent to each company and will be reported officially by Natural Resources Conservation Agency of Central Kalimantan, Orangutan Foundation UK and Yayorin, the Director General of Protection and Nature Conservation, Ministry of Forestry, Directorate General of Estate Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, West Kotawaringin District, and the governor of Central Kalimantan. On behalf of the workshop participants: 1. PT. Gunung Sejahtera Ibu Pertiwi 2. PT. Bumitama Gunajaya Agro 3. PT. Citra Borneo Indah 4. PT. Mustika Sembuluh, Wilmar Plantation 5. PT. Sampoerna Agro 6. PT. SMART Tbk 7. PT. Globalindo Alam Perkasa 8. PT. Indotruba Tengah, Minamas Plantation 9. PT. Union Sampoerna Triputra Persada 10. PT. Surya Sawit Sejati 11. Direktorat Konservasi Keanekaragaman Hayati, Ditjen PHKA, Kementerian Kehutanan 12. Komisi Perkebunan Kelapa Sawit Berkelanjutan Indonesia, Ditjen Perkebunan, Kementerian Pertanian 13. Forum Nasional CSR Kesejahteraan Sosial 14. Balai Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam Kalimantan Tengah 15. Balai Taman Nasional Tanjung Puting 16. Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah Kotawaringin Barat 17. Forum Orangutan Indonesia (FORINA) 18. WWF Indonesia 19. ZSL 20. BOSF 21. Orangutan Foundation International 22. Yayorin (Yayasan Orangutan Indonesia 23. Orangutan Foundation UK
