A new documentary, “Jejak Wallacea,” highlights how coastal communities across eastern Indonesia are reviving customary marine management systems to protect ecosystems threatened by destructive fishing, turtle hunting and habitat loss.Communities featured in the film use locally rooted approaches including seasonal fishing closures, turtle hatcheries, mangrove restoration, customary sanctions and community patrols to manage reefs, fisheries and coastal forests.Conservation groups behind the project say community-led systems rooted in Indigenous and local knowledge can succeed where top-down conservation models and formal protected areas alone often fall short.The initiatives have helped protect species including sea turtles, dugongs and thresher sharks, but organizers say long-term success depends on stronger government recognition and support for community-based conservation.
JAKARTA — On small islands across eastern Indonesia, coastal communities are reviving customary rules, seasonal fishing closures, turtle protection and mangrove stewardship to protect marine ecosystems threatened by blast fishing, turtle hunting and habitat loss.
Their efforts are the focus of Jejak Wallacea, a new documentary produced by Burung Indonesia and Arise! Indonesia as part of the Wallacea Partnership Program II, a conservation initiative supported by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund.
