Can Indonesia’s Forests Be Saved? A Local Framework May Offer Global Lessons

The settlements and agricultural areas of the Dayak people, the Indigenous inhabitants of Borneo, in the customary territory of Krayan, North Kalimantan — where the rainforest remains well-preserved. Photo: Rmsp.

By Masri Sareb Putra | July 1, 2025

JAKARTA, BORNEOTRAVEL — Tourists and conservationists from the West have long been enchanted by Borneo’s tropical rainforests — some of the richest and most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth. But while the world marvels at the island’s flora and fauna, few ask the more pressing question: Who is actually protecting it?

Indonesia, home to more than 94 million hectares of forests, is at a crossroads. Despite being the world’s largest producer of palm oil and a key exporter of pulp and paper, its natural forests are in steep decline. 

Once 64 million hectares of natural forest concessions existed; now just 18 million remain — and they produce less than 5 million cubic meters of wood per year. Meanwhile, just 4 million hectares of plantation forests produce over 50 million cubic meters annually, feeding global supply chains for paper and packaging giants.

This staggering contrast reveals more than a shift in land use. It exposes a failure to balance sustainability with economic necessity.

The Remedy Framework: Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

Enter the Remedy Framework — a bold new initiative by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), adopted in 2023. It requires companies previously disqualified for environmental or social violations to undergo a full remediation process: ecological restoration, community compensation, and rebuilding trust with Indigenous peoples and local communities.

“Without remedy, there can be no integrity in certification,” said Subhra Bhattacharjee, FSC’s director general. “This framework is a way to acknowledge past harm and move toward justice.”

At a recent closed-door session in Jakarta, Indonesian forestry expert Dr. Petrus Gunarso, an economic chamber member of the FSC, argued for accelerated adoption of this framework — not just as a tool for justice, but as an engine of national recovery.

“Forest plantations,” he told policymakers, “are not merely economic commodities. They are part of Indonesia’s recovery framework. Delaying FSC implementation over social and environmental concerns alone ignores the bigger picture — communities also need livelihoods.”

Gunarso’s point may be controversial, but it is not without merit. In a nation where forestry contributes over $20 billion annually to the economy and supports millions of jobs, forest governance must reconcile sustainability with survival.

Subhra Bhattacharjee (left) and Petrus Gunarso (right): both are committed to the preservation and protection of Indonesia’s tropical forests.

Still, some environmental groups are cautious. They warn that the Remedy Framework, if applied unevenly, may allow corporations to “buy their way back in” without genuine change.

“We need strong, independent verification of compliance,” says Dian Anggraini, a forest rights advocate. “Otherwise, it risks becoming a loophole rather than a lifeline.”

Beyond corporate reform, Gunarso believes deeper transformation is needed — and it begins with re-centering those who have cared for the forest all along: Indigenous peoples, smallholder farmers, and local communities.

Petaru: Forest Tree Farmers

He proposes a new term for them: PETARU, or Petani Tanaman Hutan — Forest Tree Farmers.

These aren’t industrial players. They’re the cultural and ecological stewards of the land, practicing sustainable forestry for generations through customary, social, and community forest schemes. Their approach blends ecology with spirituality, and economy with care.

Yet their role is rarely acknowledged in official policy — something the Remedy Framework could help change.

If fully implemented, the Framework could shift Indonesia’s forest governance from a top-down, corporate model toward something far more participatory. PETARU would no longer be mere objects of policy but active stakeholders — shaping forest futures from the ground up.

This matters not just for Indonesia, but for the world.

With global demand for wood-based products growing — and with Europe’s Deforestation-Free Supply Chain Law (EUDR) set to take effect — frameworks like this will be critical in meeting both environmental standards and ethical obligations. Companies sourcing from Indonesia cannot ignore how and by whom their materials are produced.

The path forward will not be easy. Resistance will come from entrenched industries and power brokers. But the status quo is no longer viable. We are living in a decade where ecological collapse is not hypothetical — it is unfolding in real time.

Indonesia has an opportunity to lead — not by expanding monocultures or displacing Indigenous lands, but by investing in a vision where restoration is reconciliation, and sustainability is rooted in justice.

The Remedy Framework — if implemented with integrity — can be a starting point.

But only if we center those who have always been at the heart of the forest: the people who live in it, depend on it, and know how to care for it — the PETARU.

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Masri Sareb Putra is a writer and researcher based in Borneo. He specializes in Dayak culture, forest governance, and sustainable development.