The goals of this project were fivefold:

• to explore local people’s perceptions of the forest areas and their resources
• to design appropriate educational materials and programmes to enhance local awareness of natural resources and the need for conservation
• to examine past and present patterns of land ownership around the reserve areas and the relationship to the boundaries of the reserve
• to examine progress in implementation of the management plan for the reserves and the extent of local community involvement in achieving these aims
• to explore the socio-economic value of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) currently used by local communities and their potential role in generating local income

These aims were established with the intention of enhancing local communities’ awareness and interaction with the forest reserves in order to generate support for their continued protection.

A series of semi-structured interview questions were designed to meet the aims of this project. These explored issues such as awareness of environmental degradation, functions of the forest environment, experience of consultation and participation with forest management and intensity and trends in agricultural land use. These interviews were conducted with local residents from the villages of Labundobundo, Lawele, Toruku and Kakenauwe which are located near the southern and eastern perimeter of the Kakenauwe forest reserve. For the prolonged period spent interviewing in the village of Lawele, volunteers stayed in local residents’ homes which were rented for the week. This had the added advantages of increasing informal contact between local residents and volunteers whilst bringing in additional income to the village.

The first stage in each village was to contact the village head or kepala desa and explain the aims of the project in order to obtain permission to conduct the research. Interviews were subsequently held with the kepala desa himself and a random selection of local residents. For each project, approximately 15 interviews were conducted in each village. All interviews took place within people’s homes and with no more than three volunteers and a translator present in order to generate an informal environment. Levels of environmental awareness amongst younger people were examined through designing a classroom activity for 11 year old pupils at the local schools in Lawele and Labundobundo, whilst interviews with teachers and local NGO activists involved in education were carried out in order to identify components of a successful environmental education programme. Land use information focused upon the village of Labundobundo and was obtained through interviews with farmers and mapping agricultural activities in clearings bordering the Kakenauwe reserve using hand-held GPS equipment.

As it is sometimes difficult to obtain the views of women through interviews in local people’s homes, the women’s organisations present in the larger villages of Lawele and Kakenauwe were used to set up semi-structured group discussions along the lines outlined above. These proved highly productive, with around 50 individuals attending each session who were split into smaller groups for the interview process.

Additional interviews were held with the heads of the provincial departments of Forestry and Tourism in Kendari. These complemented interviews with local residents through examining the administrative structure and overall aims of protected area management and the nature of plans for developing tourism in the region.

The project was altered to focus upon the Kakenauwe Forest Reserve rather than both Kakenauwe and Lambusango owing to the low levels of settlement around the border of the latter reserve. Interviews were conducted over a three week period from 4^th – 25^th July and submission of individual reports for the Indonesian Ministry of Science (LIPI) will be completed by 27^th July.

Preliminary findings reflect the financial problems affecting many protected areas in Indonesia and other developing countries. These are manifest in low staff levels, an inability to mount effective patrols and enforce regulations regarding access and limited boundary designation on the ground. As a result, extraction of timber is proceeding in some areas of the reserve with little effective control. Rattan is an important product obtained from the forest around the reserve and there were indications that extraction also takes place within the reserve boundaries. However, the economic return of this activity is limited at present as the rattan is sold in its raw form to exporters rather than being used to make products such as furniture or decorative items within village communities. Local women were keen to find out further information and receive skills training in order that they could begin to manufacture rattan or bamboo products and this proposal will be taken to the Wallacea Charity Trust for consideration. Honey is also taken from the forest but individuals involved in this activity are limited in number despite the relatively high value of the product, possibly due to the inherent hazards involved in its collection. Again, there is potential for this product to be marketed more widely overseas and this will form the basis of future research.

Despite the absence of effective enforcement of rules regarding access to the reserve, all communities displayed a high level of support for the concept of forest conservation. This was expressed primarily in terms of the need to regulate water supplies and prevent soil erosion, which is logical in light of the dependence upon rice for personal consumption. However, local residents frequently stated that they would like more information from management regarding the status of the forest and its future management, whilst also indicating their willingness to co-operate in ensuring the conservation of the forest.

Awareness of wider environmental issues was relatively limited, however, with few individuals or pupils recognising wider environmental issues at the global scale. However, there was a considerably knowledge base with regard to forest species, with many children being able to name more than 30 species of animals found in the forest. The design of other educational programmes is being examined in the light of these results in order to recommend appropriate materials for raising environmental awareness within schools.

Interviews with farmers in Labundobundo indicated the dominant subsistence crop was rice, with cash crops such as coconut, cocoa and cashew nuts being cultivated. The shallow soils developed on the limestone substrate preclude extended periods of cultivation, hence plots are cultivated on a rotating system every three years with individual farmers owning four such plots. Clearance of forest outside the reserve for agricultural purposes requires government permits and farmers are of the opinion that allocation of new land will be restricted for the next generation of farmers, thereby placing increased pressure on the perimeter of the forest reserve. GPS mapping of agricultural land was undertaken with the intention of clarifying the true extent of clearance, as the official 1:50,000 scale maps do not provide sufficient accuracy and are dated in their origin. These data will be processed and superimposed on existing digital maps derived from remote sensing in order to more accurately depict the extent of land clearance and identify any areas where this may encroach upon the forest reserve in the future.

Reports

A paper entitled Current management of the Kakaenauwe Forest Reserve in central Buton Island, SE Sulawesi and potential benefits to the local communities will be prepared by Dr Julian Clifton, University of Portsmouth by March 2002.