We are experiencing a dangerous decline in nature: one million species are threatened with extinction, soils are turning infertile and water sources are drying up. But there are glimmers of hope: Made up of over 17,000 islands, Indonesia is the world’s biggest archipelago. Climate Change has caused sea levels to rise and its shores are sinking. Fishing communities are now pioneering an ingenious solution to the challenge. Learn how they turn the tides.
In a village on the Indonesian island of Java, eight men are wielding saws and machetes with practiced precision, preparing long bamboo poles that they will use to defend their embattled community. The men are fighting back against the erosion and rising sea levels that have swallowed up vast areas of land along Java’s north coast, including in their home district of Demak. Key to their strategy is restoring a protective belt of mangroves.
This innovative approach to mangrove restoration is part of a multipronged effort pioneered by Wetlands International to harness the power of nature to benefit both people and nature.
In December, the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration selected the “Building With Nature” programme in Demak among its first 10 UN World Restoration Flagships to inspire the growing global movement to revive the natural world.
