Suara Masyarakat Adat untuk Alam dan Manusia

Published in 2021 by Working Group ICCAs Indonesia (WGII), this is the original Indonesian-language edition of what was later translated as 50 Indigenous Leaders' Voices for Nature and People in Indonesia (2023). The book gathers personal testimonies from fifty indigenous leaders representing communities from across the archipelago — from Mukim Siem in Aceh to Dayak communities in North Kalimantan to Orang Rimba in Jambi and fishing communities in Maluku and Papua — each speaking from lived experience about the relationship between their community and the natural environment they steward.

The voices are diverse in geography, ethnicity, and ecosystem type, yet they converge on common themes: the inseparability of cultural identity and the natural world, the effectiveness of adat (customary) law as a conservation tool, the inadequacy of state recognition and legal protection, and the urgency of external threats. Young leaders, women, and elders are all represented, reflecting the intergenerational and gender-inclusive nature of indigenous governance in many of these communities.

As the foundational Indonesian edition of this important advocacy work, Suara Masyarakat Adat untuk Alam dan Manusia was instrumental in bringing indigenous perspectives on conservation into national policy debates in Indonesia, particularly around the recognition of community conservation areas. It remains a key reference document for researchers, policymakers, journalists, and advocates working on indigenous rights and biodiversity conservation in the Indonesian context.