ConclusionThis paper has presented

Conclusion

This paper has presented a number of examples of how Dayak communities, although get limited recognition and sometimes conflicts with the government policy and management, have practiced the concept of sustainable forest management in their land and forest. I also argued that sustainable forest management in Indonesia will be better achieved if the Dayak communities involved in forestry management and policy making process.
Some traditions and practices of Dayak people which can support sustainable forest management include the tana ulen system which can conserve and secure the extent of forested land in Indonesia. In addition, the harvesting rule in Dayak communities and simpukng (forest garden) system can support biological diversity as well as sustainable extraction of forest resources. Dayak communities also support the soil and water protection by regulating tree logging around the rivers and springs as a strategy to safeguard the water catchment area.
However, the forest policy of Indonesian government is not always in line with the Dayak tradition in managing the forest. Although Dayak people have many potential in promoting the sustainability of forest, they are less involved by the government in managing the forest because of centralized forest management and lack of recognition of customary law. The conflicts between Dayak people and timber concession holder often occur because of the overlap between government map and customary map. The effort to solve this problem is needed to refine the condition.
A new hope for indigenous communities emerges in the new forest policy in Indonesia. Recently, Indonesia has recognized the existence of customary forest (hutan adat) in the Forest Law No. 41 in 1999. However, although customary forest is now acknowledged by the new forest law, clarification of the indigenous land rights and their authority toward forest management is still needed. Indonesian government should not end up with the current progress in decentralization and forest law reform. The capacity building of forest local communities is also needed to increase their ability to participate and cooperate with the government policy in the sustainable forest management.