Who are these Monkeys? (Stakeholders)

The issue of the bulk load of conservation is a highly controversial one. Who is involved? Who should remedy it? Are some questions on the minds of many. This however is a grey area where everyone is involved be it the Indonesian Government, Corporate companies, and even ourselves as Consumers. Our need for material comforts vs the need for conservation treads a very thin line.

Government

The Government job in any country would first and foremost the development of the nation. Growth be it economically or technologically is always on the minds of developing countries and sometimes it is easy to overlook the sustainability of it. As such it is only natural that Governments in a bid for growth, would seek to exploit resources to its fullest potential. Indonesia’s Government is no different.

One could say it falls to the government to enact and enforce policies that safeguard natural habitats  and in Indonesia’s case, that would be the designated conservation areas and nature reserves. Natural resources are shared commodities and as such are highly susceptible to the case of ” The Tragedy of the Commons”.  Logging permits and land distribution are handled by the Government and as such the onus is on them to take action when wide- scale habitat destruction is running rampant throughout the country.

One example for failure in Governmental Intervention is the case of Pulau Kaget. Due to the reserves soil being rich in nutrients, over the years, many local farmers from outside illegally enter the reserve to grow crops, ring-barking or poisoning many of the remaining trees, in a bid to clear more land (cf. Bismark, 1999). Leaving the reserves vegetation in a dire state so much so that  only 10 per cent of the total reserve had some form of tree cover [estimated at 5 per cent in 1993 by Yeager (1996)].

 


Companies

Another player in the role of conservation are the companies that drive the economy. These include agricultural companies that trade in palm oil, mining companies to even logging companies.

Despite Indonesia’s large land space, much of it is unsuitable for agricultural use. Large swaths of land must be cleared in other for plantations to be built. This in turn results in the destruction of natural habitats some of which are home to the proboscis monkeys. Vegetation that once served as both food and shelter for the monkeys are now replaced with inedible palm trees by agricultural companies or left barren through uncontrolled logging, threatening their survival.


Consumers (Us)

The fundamentals of free markets are driven by demand and supply. Profit- driven Companies are thus highly influenced by consumer demand, our demand.

For example, Palm Oil is one of the most consumed vegetable oil in the world. It is estimated that about half of all packaged products sold in the supermarket contain palm oil in them (e.g. Lip Stick, Moisturiser, ice cream, chocolate). Thus the amount we consume is what drives the demand and in this case the destruction of natural habitats, essential for the survival of Proboscis Monkeys.

Furthermore, the demand for bezoar stones found in the intestines of proboscis monkeys used in Chinese medicine coupled with the global demand for exotic creatures has led to the hunting of them.

  • Paper, Furniture –> Logging
  • Rice , Agriculture –> Land Clearing for plantations
  • Chinese Medicine, Pet Industry –> Hunting

Non- Governmental Organisations (NGO)

 

Despite the Government having a larger share in the responsibility to protect the environment and in this case the Proboscis Monkeys, they are often limited by manpower, funding, knowledge and institutional infrastructure (Meijaard and Nijman 2000).

Environmental NGOs can also play a substantial role in helping to plug gaps through research into sustainable envrionmental policies, constructing educational infrastructure, and facilitating independent dialogue with society to encourage, living sustainable lifestyles.

 

Conservation Psychology