Eastern Indonesia is one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. Its forests are teeming with life but they’re constantly under threat from bad actors like big palm oil companies. It’s also one of the most culturally diverse regions in the world. All that diversity is at risk if those communities don’t have rights over their lands and a means to make a livelihood from it.
EcoNusa protects Eastern Indonesian forests through market linkages for pro-forest products. First, they help local communities map their land boundaries and secure legal tenure. Then they identify companies violating regulations and push for their concessions to be revoked. EcoNusa helps communities sustainably harvest their crops in line with conservation practices. Through a large buyer cooperative, owned by both communities and EcoNusa, they ensure fair market access and better prices for local products.
Bustar Maitar founded EcoNusa Foundation in 2017 to bring together forest conservation and sustainable local economies. He is a seasoned campaigner with over 20 years of experience in environmental protection and social justice in Indonesia. He spent over a decade at Greenpeace, and led a lot of deforestation campaigns. Bustar is also an open water diving instructor, and balances his serious campaign and livelihood work with time under the water.
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