Guardians of the Forest: The Story of the Patrol Teams at the Gerbang Barito REDD+ Project
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
Between May and September 2025, two villages in Gerbang Barito REDD+ Project, Batilap and Batampang, took an important step to protect their forests. Through a community-based recruitment process, both villages now have new patrol teams ready to monitor, protect, and report activities in their village forests.
The process began with open discussions between Wildlife Works Indonesia, the village governments, and the Village Forest Management. These meetings reinforced the idea that forest protection should be led by the community itself. Together, they agreed on three guiding values that the patrol must have, which are only having patrollers who truly live in the area, who have willingness to act when the forest is at risk, and who have trust from the community.
From Recruitment to Responsibility
When recruitment opened in July, the response was overwhelming. Nearly one hundred people applied, showing that many in these villages are ready to take a stand for their forests. The selection process was rigorous and included administrative screening, a written test, interviews, and medical checks. Members from the Forest Management Unit joined Wildlife Works in the interviews to ensure fairness and transparency.
By August, eleven patrol members were selected from each village. The process was not only about finding people who could patrol but about identifying those who cared deeply for the forest. One of them was Deni, a 22-year-old from Batampang who joined out of his love for the forest.
“I used to see people cutting down trees in my village. Some were even my neighbors,” Deni recalled. “At first, I thought it was normal, but then I realized that every time the trees were cut down, floods came more often. I didn’t want that to happen.”
Deni’s motivation was simple yet profound. He wanted to protect the forest for the next generation. “We must keep the forest alive for our children and grandchildren,” he said quietly.
Learning to Protect
For Deni, joining the patrol team was not just about learning a new way of life. He still remembers the written test and called it the most challenging part of the selection. “I even searched on Google about Wildlife Works,” he laughed. “I wanted to be prepared.”
In September, the newly formed teams began their first training. They learned how to use the AVENZA, a mobile app for geospatial mapping and ODK applications to record field data and track patrol routes. Deni found the digital tools surprisingly easy to use. “The hardest part wasn’t the apps,” he said. “It was the long walks through the forest.”
Still, Deni describes those journeys as moments of joy. “Being with the patrol team makes it lighter,” he said. “We help each other. It’s tiring, but it’s worth it.”
His family shares his pride. When Deni was chosen, his parents were overjoyed. “They said, now you have real work that helps the village,” he smiled.
Hope Beyond the Trees
Deni hopes that the patrol team’s presence will prove that community-led efforts can truly protect the forest. “I want this team to succeed so people see that taking care of the forest brings real change,” he said.
With the teams now active, Batilap and Batampang stand as living examples of what happens when people closest to the forest take the lead. Their work reminds us that conservation begins with those who call the forest home.
