Rainforest to retail: Indonesian women protect nature with work

• Women use plants and flowers for ecoprinting
• Sustainable livelihoods protect at-risk rainforest
• Income helps families pay for food, school fees

BOGOR, Indonesia - Deep in Indonesia's West Javan rainforest, plants like ferns, marigolds and flowering pink cosmos, while beautiful, have rarely been seen as having economic value.

But a group of women working in a quiet conservation park in Citalahab Sentral, a small community inside Gunung Halimun-Salak National Park, aims to prove that protecting nature can go hand in hand with earning a living.

Calling themselves Ambu Halimun, which means "Mothers of Halimun" in Sundanese, they gather foliage that is rich in natural colours and tannins.

The flowers and leaves are used for ecoprinting, in which they are pressed onto fabric and steamed or boiled so the pigments transfer to the cloth.

Ambu Halimun stitches the intricately printed fabric into skirts, scarves and tote bags and sells them in global markets.

The women are carving out a sustainable livelihood from the rainforest that does not require cutting down trees, hunting wildlife or degrading the fragile ecosystem.

But the effort is small-scale, with returns nowhere as big as those from more destructive ventures like mining and logging, and the group's challenge is to grow into a large-enough force to have an impact in defending Indonesia's nature.

Indonesia is a biodiversity powerhouse – home to a significant share of global flora and fauna, including about 17% of the world's bird species and 10% of flowering plant species, according to United Nations figures.

Its rainforests shelter critically endangered species found nowhere else like orangutans, Sumatran tigers and Javan gibbons.

The rich biodiversity is under serious threat from deforestation driven by agriculture, mining and infrastructure.

The country lost 10.7 million hectares (26.4 million acres) of humid primary forest between 2002 and 2024, according to Global Forest Watch.

"The human population keeps growing, but land remains limited. These women will be on the frontlines of conservation because they now have the competence to protect nature," said Rahayu Oktaviani, co-founder and director of the Javan gibbon conservation group Konservasi Ekosistem Alam Nusantara (KIARA).

Javan gibbons

With fewer than 300 residents, Citalahab Sentral relies on tea farming and small-scale agriculture. There is tourism through homestays and forest treks as well but that provides inconsistent income.

After the pandemic battered local tourism, the KIARA group began offering residents training in ecoprinting, sewing and natural fertiliser production as well as English and public speaking.

Although guests have slowly returned since 2022, tourism earnings remain far below pre-pandemic levels.

One member of Ambu Halimun, a mother of four named Yuliana, said income from running a homestay with her husband was not enough to meet daily needs.

Now she prints fabrics with motifs from the flora and fauna.

"I never imagined that leaves could produce natural colours for making ecoprint," said Yuliana, who goes by a single name.

KIARA and the women have identified at least 24 rainforest plant species containing tannins, natural compounds that bind colour to fabric and make ecoprint dyes last longer.

Ambu Halimun members sell their products online through social media and to visiting tourists. With an Instagram account, they take orders from overseas, with prices ranging from 250,000 ($15) to 700,000 ($43) Rupiah.

The group uses a Javan gibbon motif as its ecoprint signature, and sharing stories about the gibbon's habitat and the threats it faces from deforestation and hunting helps raise local conservation awareness.

The small ape with silver-grey fur and a black face is endangered, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates about 4,000 to 4,500 gibbons remain in the wild in Indonesia.

Food and school fees

Ambu Halimun member Wulan said her ecoprint income has made a tangible difference.

Most of her family's spending goes to food and her children's school fees, she said.

Her husband, a tea picker, earns between 800,000 ($49) and 1,140,000 ($70) Rupiah a month if he works 20 days.

Many families are forced to borrow money to make ends meet, falling into debt.

"I earn 2 million Rupiah ($122) every four months from ecoprint. It's allowed me to start saving," Wulan said, as she removed a boiled marigold blossom from the fabric.
KIARA said it plans to expand the ecoprinting effort, although its artisanal nature means its size will be limited.

Women working collectively can be a powerful asset in expanding businesses, said Harumi Supit, vice president of public relations at Amartha Financial, which provides services to 3.3 million women-led businesses in rural Indonesia.

To reach and sell in larger markets, they need resources, transport and distribution channels as well as careful planning, she said.

“One of the challenges is maintaining consistent quality standards when aiming for broader reach,” she said.

Ambu Halimun said it sold 41 pieces in 2022, increasing to 237 last year. As of mid-2025, it was up to 130 sales.

KIARA’s role, said Oktaviani, is to grow the group and encourage residents - especially women - to adapt to post-pandemic economic changes and find solutions from the environment.

They have a deep knowledge of native plants, she said.

"The leaves used for ecoprint are often the same ones traditionally eaten raw or used as herbal remedies," she said. "It's rooted in traditional knowledge that's slowly disappearing."

The project not only helps keep the forest intact, but it empowers women who once "stayed tucked away in the kitchen," she said.

"Now, they have the confidence to step forward, speak up and ask questions," she said.

(Reporting by Leo Galuh; Editing by Jack Graham and Ellen Wulfhorst.)