Ledjie Taq is the Kepala

adat Alesis Digital Audio Tape (ADAT) is a magnetic tape format used for the recording of eight digital audio tracks onto the same S-VHS tape used by consumer VCRs. Although it is a tape-based format, the term ''ADAT'' now refers to its successo ...

of the Wehea Dayak village of Nehas Liah Bing, East Kalimantan,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. He is known for his efforts to protect the

Wehea Forest Wehea Forest is a 38,000 ha rainforest located in East Kutai Regency, East Kalimantan, Borneo. Wehea was declared a protected forest in 2004 by the Wehea Dayak. This project received the Kalpataru Award in 2009, Indonesia's highest environmental hon ...

Background

Ledjie Taq was born in the Wehea Dayak village of Nehas Liah Bing, on the Wehea River. He works as an elementary school teacher and farmer and became the elected leader (kepala adat) of the Wehea Dayak in 2002. Since this time he has been working to protect the

Protecting Wehea Forest

In 2004, the Wehea Dayak community of Nehas Liah Bing (Nehas) feared their forest would be lost forever. In response to this threat, the community banded together and declared the

a “locally protected forest”. The man leading this conservation effort is the 61-year-old Ledjie Taq, the tribal leader of the Wehea Dayak of East Kalimantan. In recognition of conservation efforts, President

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (born 9 September 1949), commonly referred to by his initials SBY, is an Indonesian politician and retired army general who served as the sixth president of Indonesia from 2004 to 2014. A member of the Democratic Party ...

awarded Ledjie Taq the prestigious Bintang Jasa Pratama medal in 2009. In addition, Ledjie Taq won the Kalpataru Environment Savior Award, Indonesia's highest environmental honor. Ledjie Taq gathered multi-lateral support for protecting

through a customary council meeting held in November 2004. Representatives from local Dayak communities, the local government and private sector attended this council meeting and agreed to support the declaration of 38,000 hectares of an abandoned timber concession as ‘protected land’ under Wehea Dayak traditional '

’ law. The newly established protected area was given the local name Keldung Laas Wehea Long Skung Metgueen (The Wehea protected forest located between the rivers of Skung and Metgueen). Ledjie Taq and the Wehea Dayak community wanted to protect

because of its importance as a source for water and medicinal plants, as well as non-timber forest products. In addition, Ledjie Taq knew that protecting Wehea Forest was critical for helping to protect the Wehea Dayak culture. As cultural head of the Wehea Dayak, Ledjie Taq knew that if the forest around Wehea was lost, important traditions and ceremonies would be lost as well. Since

lies within the historical territory of the Wehea Dayak, Ledjie Taq knew that protecting

under

law was also important for recovering some of the Wehea Dayak traditional land rights. To guard the newly protected forest from illegal activities, Ledjie Taq used traditional Wehea Dayak practices for conservation and established the Petkuq Mehuey (PM’s), or forest guardians. He felt by merging traditional practices into the forest conservation program, the Wehea Dayak could also sustain and protect local traditions and culture. The PM’s are a group of young people from the local community who protect the forest. They spend up to three months in the forest patrolling the borders for illegal loggers, collecting data on the flora and fauna found in

, and helping to implement new programs and initiatives.

References

External links

Wehea Protected Forest website
{{Authority control 1953 births Indonesian environmentalists Living people Forestry in Indonesia