Abstract
AbstractThe orang-utanPongospp. is protected by national and international legislation, yet populations continue to decline. Many reports implicate local people in the poaching and illegal trade in orang-utans, yet community participation has been promoted as an alternative conservation strategy. To explore how community-based orang-utan conservation could be developed, we conducted a study to understand informal institutions, particularly local people's perceptions, traditional beliefs, taboos, norms and knowledge, related to orang-utan conservation within and around the wetlands of Danau Sentarum. The majority of Dayak communities interviewed practised traditional taboos, which supported the protection of orang-utans and their habitat. Statistical analysis using generalized linear modelling indicated that more orang-utan nests were found in areas with both good habitat condition and strong informal institutions. Despite applying traditional systems that are similar to conservation, local people have negative perceptions about the term ‘conservation’. We describe the underlying causes of these negative perceptions and highlight their implications for conservation programmes and policies. We conclude that conservation of orang-utans and other species should not focus on single species but on maintaining social and natural capital, cultural diversity and ecological functions at various institutional levels and across geographical scales.
Highlights
The orang-utan Pongo spp. is the only remaining Asian great ape and is found only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo (Rijksen & Meijaard, ; Singleton et al, )
We aim to fill this knowledge gap by ( ) describing perceptions and informal institutions of the major ethnic groups around Danau Sentarum wetlands, including traditional beliefs, taboos, norms, knowledge and practices, which are related to orangutan and broader forest conservation, and ( ) evaluating how these informal institutions could contribute to improving the protection of orang-utans and their habitat
We focus on nature-related social taboos as a subset of informal institutions (Colding & Folke, ), and adopt the definition of taboo as ‘a prohibition against touching, saying or doing something for fear of immediate harm from a supernatural force; or a prohibition imposed by social custom or as a protective measure’ (Merriam-Webster, )
Summary
The orang-utan Pongo spp. is the only remaining Asian great ape and is found only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo (Rijksen & Meijaard, ; Singleton et al, ). Both species, the Sumatran orang-utan Pongo abelii and the Bornean orang-utan Pongo pygmaeus, are categorized as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List (Singleton et al, ; Ancrenaz et al, ). National and district land use planning prioritizes large-scale industrial plantations and mining, with little (if any) protection of orang-utan habitat outside protected areas by either the National Planning Agency or the agriculture and mining sectors. This shows that formal institutions are weak, infractions are often ignored and sanctions are insignificant
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call