A legally binding conservation deed was signed by the last of 266 Indigenous clan leaders across 41 villages in Papua New Guinea to protect over 125,000 hectares (about 309,000 acres) of rainforest. This agreement benefits local communities, their land, forests, livelihoods, and endangered tree kangaroos.
Papua New Guinea has hundreds of Indigenous languages and communities that live in rural areas, where people depend on agriculture, forests, and other natural resources. Infrastructure can be difficult to develop in many parts of the country because of the mountainous and heavily forested terrain. This makes conservation efforts especially important. Instead of treating the forest and the people who live there as separate issues, the conservation deed, signed on June 30, brings them together. Protecting the rainforest can help protect wildlife while also preserving the land and resources that communities depend on.
The project is being led by the Tenkile Conservation Alliance (TCA), a local conservation organization that has worked in the Torricelli Mountains since 2001. TCA focuses on protecting native species while working with communities to reduce hunting and safeguarding forests. The 41 participating villages agreed to a set of rules about what activities can and cannot take place on their land that the villages themselves were consulted on over two years.
Tree kangaroos are largely unheard of even though there are 14 subspecies, 12 in PNG and two in Australia. Unlike their more famous counterpart, ground-dwelling kangaroos, tree kangaroos have adapted to life in tropical forests. They spend much of their time in trees and can be difficult to observe because of their rarity and dense forest habitat.
The Torricelli Mountain Range is especially important because it is the only known place where three species of tree kangaroos live together. The Tenkile tree kangaroo and Weimang tree kangaroo are classified as Critically Endangered. The Grizzled tree kangaroo is classified as Vulnerable. Twenty-five years ago when TCA was founded, Tenkile’s population dropped to only about 100 of these animals, making it one of the world’s most endangered mammals. Luckily, their numbers have since climbed past 300.
Historically, few efforts in PNG have had a positive long-term impact because outside agendas have negatively impacted decision-making, according to a study conducted by researchers Mikal Eversole Nolan, Danny Samandingke, and Timmy Sowang, published in the Journal for Nature Conservation. TCA is one of the organizations that has been steadfast in its mission and morals to help bring back the tree kangaroos for good.
This conservation deed, which takes the context and importance of the issues to everyone and everything on the island seriously, can create lasting positive change.
In Papua New Guinea, 266 Indigenous clan leaders have signed a conservation deed protecting more than 125,000 hectares of rainforest and endemic species that live there.
The contract, signed by 41 villages and led by the Tenkile Conservation Alliance, protects their forests, livelihoods, and endangered Tenkile, Weimang, and Grizzled species of tree kangaroos.
Sources: New ‘conservation deed’ aims to protect tree kangaroos, forests, people in Papua New Guinea, Barriers and benefits to tree kangaroo conservation in Papua New Guinea
Tenkile Conservation Alliance: Tenkile Conservation Alliance (TCA)
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