Kalibiru: The Lost Wood

Long time ago before Indonesia became an independent country, Kalibiru was a small village in a Menoreh Hill in Kulon Progo Regency. The people was poor, they only plant tubers for living. When colonial period run most of Indonesia land, including Menoreh Hill, they made a decision to make Menoreh Hill becomes their plantation for teak wood and eagle wood, so they can harvest it for their own needs.

Several years after independent day and the old order, coruption is every where including the administrator of Kalibiru social forest. They should protect the forest from ilegal logging but conversely they are the people behind the ilegal logging. After reformation of Indonesia the land of forest became dry, there is no tree, only clumps and tubers that live in the forest. Some of Indonesian enviromental organizations believe that the first way to do to safe the forest is to educate the people about how important is to keep the trees alive in the forest. What the functions of the trees are, to keep the balance of the soil water so there is no more dryness, to keep the balance of oxygen in the air, to keep the balance of ecosystem, to be house for birds and animal and many other funtions. The most important thing is to educate about the danger if there is no tree in the forest, like flood, soil erosion, land slide, dryness and many other disasters.

The people understand and the reforestation begun. Nowadays the social forest is full of trees and it becomes a tourism area. Many out door activities can be done here. Out bond activities, flying fox, watching sunset or sunrise from the deck view and many photo spots that so Instagramable.
Come visit and try those various things! Keep the trash off the forest and cheers!