Rafting, Honey, and Butterflies in the Rain Forest of Sulawesi, Indonesia

by The Nature Conservancy

What's at Stake?

Lore Lindu National Park (LLNP) in Central Sulawesi is a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve. The area contains some of the largest unbroken tracts of forest within Sulawesi and is home to 73% of the island's 328 bird species. The wildlife of Sulawesi is one of the most distinctive in all Indonesia, particularly its mammals, and its rare and spectacular butterflies.

As in many places in Indonesia, Lore Lindu Park not only supports wildlife, it provides natural resources to help meet the basic needs of a growing human population living near the park. The park is threatened by over-utilization, encroachment, illegal harvesting of rattan and other forest resources and by infrastructure development.

To try to counter these threats, TNC is focusing on four elements: 1) Developing microenterprises such as butterfly ranching, honey production, and rafting ecotourism, 2) Park Management and Stewardship including drafting a 25-year resource management plan with the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation (PHPA), 3) Working with Communities to increase conservation awareness and respect for the park through sustainable development projects with CARE/Indonesia and a school level conservation program and 4) Ascertaining the impact of the above activities from the social, biological and economic perspectives. TNC's monitoring program also assesses the impact of the ongoing, widespread rattan collection in LLNP. In addition to developing ecologically sound enterprises and introducing conservation awareness programs, TNC also works with the Government of Indonesia on policy issues. This project will allow TNC to work closely with PHPA on community access to and use of protected areas.

	1997 Update
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