Indonesia hunters' rewarding switch to protectors

INDONESIAN villager Octavius wades through the forest in rubber boots and tattered joggers, ears pricked, eyes peeled, a telephoto lens on his phone primed to capture orangutan, monkeys or birds.

The daily photo hunt earns Octavius and hundreds of others in Borneo cash as part of a conservation programme seeking to make animals worth more alive than dead.

Locals on the island have long made money from hunting wild songbirds and selling them, mainly to domestic customers.

The KehatiKu project aims to break that cycle by paying individuals in nine participating villages in West Kalimantan province for photos or recordings of animals instead.

Payments range from 5,000 rupiah for observing a common bird, to 130,000 rupiah for an endangered orangutan — the top prize.

The most successful observers earn up to 10 million rupiah a month — equivalent to about US$570, several times an average farmworker's income.

The extra cash "really helps, especially to pay for my children's college", said 50-year-old Octavius.

The programme, run by environmental consultancy Borneo Futures, began two years ago and produces data on wildlife distribution and population changes.

Most participants are small-scale farmers of rice, cacao, durian and the stimulant kratom.

Early signs suggest the scheme is working.

"People have started to realise that where previously they caught one bird and it was worth 50,000 rupiah, now they just need to take a photo, send it to us, and they can receive a payment of 5,000 to 10,000 rupiah," said Borneo Futures Indonesia director Nardiyono.

"If they take just five photos, they (may) earn 50,000 rupiah, and the bird is still in their environment, still observable and still able to reproduce, so the potential income from observing birds is far greater than from hunting birds."

The programme is funded by philanthropic foundations and has received about US$300,000 to date, according to Borneo Futures.

Half has gone towards development, including a mobile app for uploading animal sightings and an artificial intelligence (AI) system that helps humans verify observations.

So far, users have submitted more than 350,000 observations, about half of which have been validated and paid for.

Invalid entries might include multiple observations of the same animal, or a species that is not on the programme's list.

Octavius and dozens of others gathered this month at the tiny office in Labian village — a population of 683 — for their monthly payments.

His share was four million rupiah, or nearly US$230.

"This is a side job; it doesn't interfere" with farming, he said as he showed off a patch where he grows kratom and cacao.

"Sometimes when we're working, when everyone is gathered to collect kratom leaves, we hear birds calling, so we go over, observe them — if we can take a photo, we take a photo; if not, we just make a sound recording."

The programme's model is "likely better for both environmental and social impacts than an unincentivised, top-down conservation project design," said researcher Paul Ferraro of the US-based Johns Hopkins University.

The main challenge will be maintaining funding, he added.

For now, Borneo Futures has funding secured through 2028, and two more villages will join next month.

It pays for observations of 73 species, including birds, monkeys, wild cats and deer.

Antonia Uneng says she never has to venture too far from her home in Sungai Ajung, a village of fewer than 400, for observations.

She bought her first fridge with her earnings, as well as a karaoke machine, complete with flashing lights and two microphones, that occupies pride of place in her living room.

The project has given women in the village a sense of independence, said the 36-year-old part-time nursing assistant, whose husband works abroad.

"I have my own income... so I am not dependent on my husband."

Imelda, a farmer in Labian, goes into the forest daily with friends to record bird sounds and, if they are lucky, orangutan. "It makes us healthier, walking in the forest," said the 72-year-old.

In the past, some in the community considered wild boar and deer pests for damaging their gardens and crops, she said.