Indigenous Peoples' Climate Change Assessment
Fact Sheet Sorong, West Papua, Indonesia
Papua is the Western half of the island of New Guinea, the easternmost part of Indonesia.
A central East-West mountain range dominates the geography of New Guinea, extending over 1,600 km (994 mi) in total length. The Western section is around 600 km (373 mi) long and 100 km (62 mi) across. Steep mountains between 3,000 and 5,000 m (9,850–16,400 ft) in altitude along the range ensure a steady supply of rain from the tropical atmosphere. The tallest peaks are snowbound year round.
Both north and west of the central ranges the land remains mountainous — mostly 1,000 to 2,000 m (3,300–6,660 ft) high — and covered by thick rain forest with a warm, humid climate year round.
The third major habitat feature is the South-East lowlands with extensive wetlands stretching for hundreds of kilometers.
The province has 40 major rivers, 12 lakes, and 40 islands. The Mamberamo River is the province's largest river and winds through the Northern part of the province. The result is a large area of lakes and rivers known as the Lakes Plains region. The vast southern lowlands, which consist of a mosaic of habitats including mangrove, tidal and freshwater swamp forest, and lowland rainforest, are home to a dense population of fishermen and gatherers such as the Asmat people. The famous Baliem Valley, home of the Dani people is a tableland 1,600 m (5,250 ft) above sea level in the midst of the central mountain range; Puncak Jaya (formerly Carstensz Pyramid) is a mist covered limestone mountain peak 4,884 m (16,024 ft) above sea level, the highest point in Indonesia.
Papua is home to over 50% of Indonesia’s biodiversity, and has an estimated 16,000 species of plant, 124 genera of which are endemic.
There are 250 indigenous peoples in Papua. They depend on the regions resources for their food, shelter, medicine and spiritual sustenance. Papua’s environment is threatened by logging, mining, natural gas development and palm oil plantations. The indigenous peoples of Papua further suffer widespread human rights abuses at the hands of the Indonesian military.
Through a climate change impact assessment, Papuan communities can create community-based ecosystem management plans that conserve local biodiversity, increase resource abundance, improve incomes and ensure long term food security in the face of climate change.