*Fajar’s sustainable tree nursery

Fajar Lestari is located on the edge of the Jantho Nature Reserve, a protected area in northern Sumatra where we have been establishing a new orangutan population since 2011. We support the local communities in setting up honey cooperatives to create a sustainable, biodiversity-friendly livelihood and thus promote the protection of orangutans. Thanks to the active commitment of the two brothers Fajar (right on the cover photo) and Iqbal (left on the photo), the honeybee project has become a meeting place for beekeepers in the form of the Fajar Lestari Nursery. Here they can exchange experiences and knowledge. But Fajar Lestari is much more than that.

Our two champions and the story of «Fajar Lestari Nursery»

Fajar Rahayu was born in the village of Jantho in 2002. He is the child of Mr. Azhar and Mrs. Azmiati. Fajar has four siblings, Reza Bahlia, Muhammad Iqbal, Ria Munandar, and Siba Zatharina. Fajar became interested in nature conservation in 2021 when he joined the SMART patrol team, which monitors the nature reserve. During his stays in the forest, he conducted biodiversity surveys together with the team. In his spare time, Fajar collected seeds from betel nut palms, candle nuts, coffee, and avocados. At home, he grew the seeds in plastic bags into plants, which he planted on a 0.5-hectare unused plot of land belonging to his family. Fajar was assisted in growing the plant seeds by his friend Efan and some women from the village of Jantho. He is very proud that he was able to pay them 200 to 500 rupees per seed planted from his salary as a ranger at the time.

At the end of 2021, our YEL employee Mukhlisin learned about Fajar’s tree nursery and visited the garden. At that time, we were just starting our beekeeping project with stingless bees. Mukhlisin immediately realized that the tree nursery was also an ideal place for a bee pasture. The collaboration worked out, not least because Fajar was supported by his mother and siblings in letting him permanently use the family land for this purpose.

The seedlings that have been grown in the nursery include fruit trees such as mango, star fruit, soursop, durian, and grapes. There are also flowering plants such as sunflowers, marigolds, zinnias, vines, jasmine, hibiscus, and Asian pigeonwings, and the community grows vegetables such as spinach, water spinach, Chinese cabbage, eggplant, cassava, and tomatoes.

In early 2022, Fajar’s older brother Iqbal began constructing various buildings on the site. The first was an elegant greenhouse open on all sides, a kitchen, and a toilet. Recently, a two-story building was added, with a relaxation room on the upper floor and a meeting room on the lower floor. Over time, Iqbal also became interested in beekeeping. He specialises in harvesting liquid honey, which is sucked out of the combs with a hose. He also assists the beekeeping community with the routine maintenance of the hives.

Fajar Lestari has now developed into an environmental education center of regional importance. Schoolchildren and interested members of the public not only gain insights into beekeeping, but they also learn about topics such as sustainable agriculture and nature conservation.

Fajar and Iqbal are delighted to be part of the honeybee project. Not only does it benefit them personally, but it also supports the people in the surrounding communities. They hope that the program will be expanded, and that young people will be attracted to it, so that it will have an ecological impact as well as an economic one.