Farwiza Farhan: The Fierce Battle to Save the Leuser Ecosystem

In the Leuser Ecosystem, described by UNESCO as the ‘last place on Earth’ where elephants, tigers, rhinos, and orangutans roam together, conservation efforts are a race against time to ensure a future for the next generation. Environmental activists stand at the front lines, acting as a crucial buffer between the natural world and the forces of government policy and industrial deforestation.

For Farwiza Farhan, the devastating floods and landslides that struck Aceh and two other Sumatran provinces late last year were beyond anything she had envisioned. While Aceh is no stranger to such disasters, the scale of this catastrophe, unfolding as 2025 drew to a close, was unprecedented.

During the initial weeks, panic set in. Farwiza struggled to contact her colleagues at the Forest, Nature, and Environment Aceh Foundation (HAkA), an NGO dedicated to protecting the Leuser Ecosystem, as power grids failed and communication lines went dark. Many HAkA staff were in the remote village of Linge in Central Aceh, preparing for the Nenggeri Linge Festival when the disaster struck.

“We heard reports of roads being cut off and entire villages swept away, leaving communities completely isolated,” Farwiza recalled during an interview in mid-April. As she realized the extent of the disaster—which devastated not just her team, but the local communities—her initial panic transformed into a mixture of frustration and indignation.

She questioned the government’s crisis response, which she deemed inadequate. “Why were we not warned about the cyclone? Was there no early warning system in place? If we had known, we could have executed an entirely different disaster response plan,” she asserted.

While the government attributed the disaster to a combination of extreme rainfall and a tropical cyclone seedling named Senyar, they eventually acknowledged that upstream land conversion and deforestation were significant contributing factors. Despite the official inaction, Farwiza and HAkA moved swiftly to become first responders. They mobilized public donations, conducted needs assessments, and distributed aid directly to victims who had lost family members, homes, and basic necessities.

For Farwiza, the emotional toll was immense. She declined many media interviews during the recovery phase, admitting, “Every time I spoke about it, I would break down in tears.” Almost six months later, recovery remains incomplete, and Farwiza warns that without comprehensive preventative measures and a halt to the unchecked destruction of forest cover, the threat of recurring disasters is inevitable.

A Lifelong Connection to Leuser

Farwiza’s passion for conservation began in childhood. Growing up in Aceh, she spent her youth climbing trees, running along beaches, and collecting seashells. Her environmental consciousness was further ignited by watching David Attenborough’s Blue Planet, which sparked her dream of becoming a conservationist. After studying biology, she eventually found her calling in forest conservation, driven by a relentless curiosity and a supportive family who encouraged her to pursue her passions with excellence.

Her pivotal moment came in 2010 when she arrived at the renowned Ketambe Research Station. Recalling her first visit, she laughed about arriving in impractical sneakers and being terrified of leeches. However, the fear vanished when she spotted a mother orangutan and her child in the forest canopy. “They are so much like us—mothers caring for their children for years,” she reflected. That moment solidified her commitment to protecting this “heart” of Southeast Asia’s biodiversity, sparking a love affair with the Leuser forest that she describes as happening “again and again.”

Facing Political and Economic Pressures

The challenges facing the Leuser Ecosystem (KEL) are deeply systemic. Farwiza argues that Indonesia’s economic system often favors those who exploit the land, while those working to protect it are met with obstacles. She points to the irony where corporate interests remain unscathed by disaster while local communities bear the brunt of environmental decay.

Research, including a 2018 study titled Infrastructure development and contested forest governance threaten the Leuser Ecosystem, highlights how road infrastructure and palm oil plantations continue to fragment the landscape. HAkA’s data shows that after a period of stabilization, deforestation rates in Leuser spiked between 2024 and 2025.

Legal battles have been a constant part of this struggle. Despite the Leuser Ecosystem being designated as a National Strategic Area under Law Number 26 of 2007, local regulations like Aceh’s 2013 Spatial Planning (RTRW) Qanun have frequently bypassed these protections to facilitate development. Farwiza and her organization have fought these policies in court, often facing intimidation in return. She has been labeled a “liberal” by politicians and accused of being a “foreign agent” for using international funding to critique domestic policies.

“The greatest threat to Leuser is the threat of policy,” Farwiza says. “When policymakers view the ecosystem as a burden whose protection must be stripped away for development, the impact is felt by the broader community.”

Global Recognition and Future Hope

Farwiza’s decade-long dedication has earned her international acclaim, including the Whitley Gold Award in 2016 and again in 2025, as well as being named a TIME 100 Next leader. However, she remains humble, insisting that these awards are a testament to the collective effort of her team and local communities. The funding from these awards is being channeled into monitoring vulnerable watersheds like Tamiang and Jambo Aye, where deforestation has severely exacerbated flooding.

Using a combination of satellite data, drones, and community-led knowledge, HAkA works to bridge the gap between grassroots reality and regulatory advocacy. For Farwiza, Leuser is more than a forest; it is the identity and home of the Acehnese people. Protecting it is an act of intergenerational justice.

While the struggle is far from over—ranging from legal battles against plantation giants to training local women in legal defense—Farwiza remains determined. “There are millions of indigenous people and environmental fighters around the planet working to restore the earth,” she says. “Knowing we are part of that global movement gives me the strength to continue.”

Related Reading:

• Deforestation in company concession lands contributes to floods and landslides in North Sumatra
• Government files 4.8 trillion IDR lawsuit and revokes permits of companies linked to Sumatran disasters
• The importance of a gender-based perspective in environmental reporting: ‘The forest is our mother; if the forest is damaged, so are we’
• Prabowo’s speech regarding ‘no need to fear deforestation’ for the sake of expanding palm oil plantations draws criticism