Tropical forests are under threat from development. However, development also brings benefits such as improved access to healthcare. Is it possible to protect forests and ensure a better life for local people?

Researchers from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research studied the attitudes of Punan hunter-gatherers. This group originally lived around the Tubu River in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. During the early 1970s, the Indonesian government resettled eight Punan villages in Respen Sembuak, near the city of Malinau. However, five villages remained in the remote forests of upper Tubu. The two groups have had very different experiences in the last thirty years.

The researchers compared the two Punan groups over five years, analysing cultural factors and aspects of well-being, such as household economics, health and nutrition. They asked the groups of all ages to rank the advantages and disadvantages of living in the city and the forest.

Findings showed that child and infant mortality rates amongst resettled Punan were low, and literacy amongst young people was very high. However, older respondents complained about the loss of their culture and that nothing was free in the city. Key findings in Respen included:

• 76 percent of men and women considered good access to healthcare as the main advantage of living near the city, followed by access to formal education, information and job opportunities.
• 62 percent ranked the lack of security as the main disadvantage; problems included harassment, poor integration with locals and competition with other ethnic groups.
• Drugs and alcohol were a key problem among the younger generation.

The Punan who remained in the forest had limited access to healthcare and education, with high rates of infant and child mortality and widespread illiteracy, especially amongst women. However, they were able to live without using money much, and the whole community took care of poor and vulnerable people. Their standard of nutrition, diet and level of fitness were better than Punan in the city. Key findings for this group included:

• The main advantage of living in the forest was that everything was free and plentiful, including food (ranked first by 77 percent of respondents), areas of land for swidden (upland rice) cultivation and forest products
• The main disadvantage of living in the forest was limited access to healthcare (ranked first by 67 percent of respondents), followed by the high price of basic goods.

Is it possible to take the best of both worlds? The Punan of the Sule-Pipa settlement in the remote Apo Kayan provide an interesting example. They have good healthcare and education, combined with a thriving local economy. The lack of road infrastructure protects the forests from intensive logging or conversion to plantations, with an airstrip providing access to goods and services. The researchers conclude that:

• The Punan in upper Tubu should move into larger, more permanent settlements. A minimum of 150–200 households is essential to attract teachers, paramedics and traders
• To cover the increased cost of providing services in remote areas, it is imperative to secure subsidies either from government or from conservation and medical non-governmental organisations.

Source(s):
‘City Life in the Midst of the Forest: a Punan Hunter-Gatherer’s Vision of Conservation and Development’, Ecology and Society, 12, 1, by Patrice Levang, Soaduon Sitorus and Edmond Dounias, 2007 Full document.

Funded by: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD); Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR); International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO)

id21 Research Highlight: 13 September 2007

Further Information:
Patrice Levang
P.O Box 6596 JKPWB
Jakarta 10065
Indonesia

Tel: +62 251 622622
Fax: +62 251 622100
Contact the contributor: p.levang@cgiar.org

Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

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