BirdLife mourns a forest defender, Elva Gemita
Last week, we sadly lost an exceptional conservationist. Elva Gemita was the Biodiversity Officer for Hutan Harapan in Indonesia, a forest concession led by the BirdLife Partnership.
Elva dedicated her life’s work to studying and protecting all plants and animals in Jambi Province on the island of Sumatra. This incredible work helped to protect some of the last lowland rainforest on the island, which is known to be one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet.
As a Sumatran native, throughout her life she saw these incredible rainforests disappearing around her. Despite these losses, she continued to fight to save and protect what was left. Her dedication to this cause inspired countless young environmentalists to defend their native ecosystems.
Over the course of nearly 15 years at Hutan Harapan, she sought to ensure that wildlife could thrive in the 100,000-hectare landscape. She studied Hutan Harapan’s birds, dragonflies, mammals and plants, and created plans to defend them from human interference and wildfires. Many of her days were spent deep in the forest of Hutan Harapan, no matter the heat, rain, or clouds of insects, conducting this field research on the ground.
Elva’s greatest love outside of her family, was for the tigers of these rainforests. Through camera traps set throughout the forests, she would track the remaining tigers, learning their entire life histories. She could recognise each and every individual. This love helped her become an expert on the Critically Endangered Sumatran Tiger, and drove her work to end tiger poaching.
Before joining the team of Hutan Harapan, Elva had already been working to safeguard the wildlife in this very same landscape. She brought with her years of experience working for Durell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, Fauna & Flora International, and the Zoological Society of London within the Jambi Province rainforests.
Vinayagan Dharmarajah, Regional Director of BirdLife Asia shared, “Elva was a pillar of conservation in Indonesia. Her unwavering dedication to protecting these amazing species, including tigers and hornbills, paved the way for the conservation of Hutan Harapan as a safe haven for species and the broader protection broader of Sumatra’s rainforests.”
Tom Walsh of Burung Indonesia noted that Elva was always willing to share her knowledge with others. “No matter how many times I walked in the forest with her, there was always something new to learn. She had a wonderful laugh that always lightened the spirit.”
According to the Director of PT REKI, “Elva Gemita was one of the ‘fighters and heroes’ of restoration and conservation for the remaining lowland forests, especially Harapan Forest. Elva was very militant, dedicated and has made an extraordinary contribution to saving biodiversity.“
Elva Gemita’s passion and dedication to protecting Sumatra’s forests will be greatly missed by the BirdLife teams.
