Lembaga Taras (Taras Institute), an Indonesian community-based natural resource management NGO, plans to start a pilot program to develop local community-based plantations of Agarwood, a dark resinous heartwood that forms in Aquilaria trees when they become infected with a type of mold. Agarwood has been used for centuries for incense, perfumes, essential oils and in traditional medicine, and it c
ommands very high prices on world markets. Today, Agarwood is very scarce and some species are bordering on extinction. Lembaga Taras is interested in cultivating a species native to West Kalimantan province, in Borneo, Indonesia. The community-based Agarwood plantations it is proposing would enable group members from the communities of Sebalos and Paling, in West Kalimantan, to create sustainable livelihoods and develop economic opportunities, while preserving the endangered old-growth Aquilaria and supporting forest and wildlife conservation. The Taras Institute will form farming groups in these communities and train them in the seeding, nursing and planting of native Aquilaria trees. It will also conduct educational workshops to raise awareness about the socioeconomic and environmental benefits of Agarwood cultivation, and the negative impacts of palm oil plantations to their communities. Moreover, it will facilitate coordination and communication between the local communities and other organizations and relevant institutions.
