From right: Chan, Asai Barat, Robert, Hamden, Jeffrey Moyong and Chery Gadung look at the contents of the newly launched coffee table book.


 
 
 

KUCHING: A new coffee table book entitled ‘Kuba’an-Puak Story: Journey Towards A Green Corridor’ was launched here yesterday.

The 159-page book features stories from Kuba’an-Puak, home to indigenous people, focusing on Penans and their close relationship with nature and contribution in Sustainable Forest Management (SFM).

Forest Department Sarawak (FDS) and WWF-Malaysia jointly published the book with the support of the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

The director of Forest Department Sarawak, Hamden Mohammad, unveiled the book on the sidelines of the 18th Malaysian Forestry Conference at a leading hotel.

Speaking at the book launch, Hamden said the stories in the book convey Penans’ special relationship with the forests, mountains, rivers, plants and animals.

He said the book contains images from the field and excerpts from the communities themselves, documenting their traditional knowledge, wisdom and oral history; concerns and hopes; and their journey in sustainable forest management alongside other stakeholders towards a green corridor in the Heart of Borneo.

He noted that FDS along with WWF-Malaysia, Sarawak Forestry Corporation and Community Information and Communications Centre, among others, had taken on Kuba’an-Puak Forest Management Unit (FMU) as a pilot project site to explore and develop a model SFM in the state.

According to him, the journey first began in 2011 when Sarawak identified a forest management unit located in between Kuba’an River and Puak River, hereafter called Kuba’an-Puak FMU, to field test against the High Conservation Values Forest (HCVF) Toolkit that had been developed for Malaysian conditions.

The area, he said, also forms an important linkage between three major protected areas in Sarawak; namely Gunung Mulu, Gunung Buda and Pulong Tau national parks.

“The department would like to take this opportunity to thank the German Federal Ministry for Food and Agriculture for funding this project that promotes the concept of SFM. This project is based on research, capacity building and empowerment on SFM to stakeholders including the community.

“We hope that through this coffee table book, people can see the importance of our forests and how we can and should be managing them sustainably. The forests in Kuba’an-Puak are not only for the Penans and people of Sarawak, but what we do will benefit and create positive influence for the international communities,” he said.

The Kuba’an-Puak project area spans about 360,000 hectares, covering multiple FMUs between Mulu National Park and Pulong Tau National Park. This project is part of the Heart of Borneo Corridor Initiative.

The book is sold at RM150 per copy at WWF-Malaysia’s Kuching Office at 7th floor of Bangunan Binamas, Padungan Road and its headquarters at 1, Jalan PJS 5/28A, Petaling Jaya Commercial Centre (PJ CC), Petaling Jaya, during office hours from Monday to Friday.

Also present at the launch were Robert Basiuk from WWF-Malaysia Board of Trustees, conservation director Dr Henry Chan and representatives from the Penan community Asai Barat, Cherry Gadung, Usun Malin and Jeffrey Moyong.