A Ramon Magsaysay Award laureate underlined the need for communities to be given access to the decision-making table, particularly those concerning the environment.
Environmental advocate Farwiza Farhan said that nature conservation and preservation must begin at the grassroots level by default.
“But that seat is often underutilized because the barrier of entry is too high,” she said.
The awardee from Indonesia was delivering a lecture at the Ramon Magsaysay Center in Manila, Philippines on November 14.
Farhan lamented how the government and corporations hinder locals from taking part in the decisions being made in their own communities.
“Oftentimes, [the locals] get invited to the meeting, [but] they’re not able to understand what’s going on. They get invited… without having a grapple with the reality of the consequences if they allow that development to happen. As a consequence, unknowingly, a whole lot of communities give out a blank check of consent for the project to go ahead,” she explained.
Experience has shown us that the most passionate and effective advocates for an ecosystem are the people whose lives and livelihoods are deeply intertwined with its landscape,"said Farhan.
Farhan looked back on how their non-government organization HakA lost a lawsuit against the Aceh and Indonesian governments for the dismantling of the protection of the Leuser Ecosystem.
“We lost in court, but the communities that took part in this lawsuit got first-hand experience that it is possible to protest, organize, and even sue the government for the protection of your land and livelihood,” she said.
“Experience taught us that the strongest advocate for this ecosystem is the people whose life and livelihood is closely tied to this landscape,” she also said.
On the other hand, Farhan reflected on HAkA’s win in a court verdict that led to a US$26 million in fines against a palm oil company that burned forest in the Leuser Ecosystem and stopped a hydroelectric dam that would have threatened elephant habitats.
“A celebrated success today is a new challenge tomorrow,” she said. “Acknowledging this reality, we can do is continue learning and [developing] iteration for our approach. My dream is that one day, the community and local politicians will choose the path of conservation as part of the integrated economic development.”
Furthermore, Farhan emphasized the need for “feminist men and empowered women” to elevate the fight for environmental preservation.
“When we strengthen and empower women in the village, we also need to work with the men to build the support system for these women so they could continue to thrive,” she stated.
“We need to build a strong village-level institution with a governance system based on transparency and accountability so we didn't put all the burden to minimize corruption, resolve conflict, and build organizational capacity on the leaders alone,” she also said.
Farhan was bestowed with the Ramon Magsaysay Award this year for her “profound understanding of the vital connection between nature and humanity, her commitment to social justice and responsible citizenship through her work with forest communities, and her promotion of greater awareness of the need to protect the beating heart and lungs of her country’s and Asia’s rich but endangered natural resources.”
Alongside Farhan are four other laureates: Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, Vietnamese doctor Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, Bhutanese thought leader Kharma Phuntsho, and Thailand’s Rural Doctors Movement.
