Indonesia hunters' rewarding switch to protectors
INDONESIAN villager Octavius wades through the forest in rubber boots and tattered joggers, ears pricked, eyes peeled, a telephoto lens on his phone primed to capture orangutan, monkeys or birds.
In Indonesia's West Kalimantan province, villagers are earning money by photographing and recording wildlife instead of hunting them. The KehatiKu conservation programme, run by Borneo Futures, pays people for observing animals like orangutans, birds, and deer. Payments range from 5,000 to 130,000 rupiah, with successful observers earning up to 10 million rupiah a month.
The scheme, which began two years ago, is funded by philanthropic foundations and has produced data on wildlife distribution and population changes. Participants, mostly farmers, are seeing the financial benefits of conservation. For example, 50-year-old Octavius earns nearly $230 a month from the programme, which has helped him pay for his children's college education.
The most successful observers earn the highest amounts, with the top prize being 10 million rupiah. Borneo Futures' director, Nardiyono, explains that observing animals is more profitable than hunting them, as they can receive 50,000 to 10,000 rupiah for each photo taken. The programme uses a mobile app and AI to verify observations, and so far, users have submitted over 350,000 observations, half of which have been validated and paid for.
Written by urgent.news from New Straits Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
