These are difficult times for many indigenous, forest-dwelling communities. Over much of the tropical world, forests are under threat from logging, mining, road-building and other activities. While contact with the outside world has undoubtedly brought some benefits to remote communities, the changes which are occurring are frequently rapid and often destructive. But how precisely, does this affect the livelihoods of forest dwellers such as the Punan of Borneo?

To find out, CIFOR scientists, seconded from the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), conducted a comparative study of two very different Punan communities. Over a three-year period they compared the health, diet and livelihoods of a remote community which still practises hunter-gathering in the Upper Tubu Valley in East Kalimantan, with settled Punan living in Respen Sembuak, a suburb of the district capital, which is well-served by medical facilities, schools and markets.

The research team analysed over 1200 individual food dishes in the Upper Tubu, assessing the quality of diet and seasonal fluctuations. They also measured the weight, stature and fat condition of over 800 people, and analysed blood, urine and faeces. This enabled them to build up a detailed profile of each individual’s health. Similar research, measuring the same parameters, was undertaken in Respen.

‘With their higher incomes, better education and lower child and infant mortality, the downstream Punan in Respen would appear to be much better off than their cousins in the forest,’ explains agro-economist Patrice Levang. ‘However, the situation is much more complex than it seems.’ The research revealed that for most of the year, and contrary to expectations, remote villagers have a healthier diet than urban Punan and are better nourished.

But there is a downside to living in isolated communities. From time to time epidemics lead to significantly higher death rates in the Upper Tubu, especially among children. For example, during a two-month period in 2002, 28 children in two small villages – almost half the children there – died during an epidemic. Punan living in remote communities have recently come into contact with diseases, such as measles, to which they have little or no immunity. In contrast, Punan who have been living downstream for some time have greater immunity to these diseases, as well as access to health care.

The findings of the study were presented to a ‘restitution workshop’ in Malinau, the district capital, in April 2005. The research was well received by the local authorities, and the scientists believe the workshop discussions and follow-up meetings are helping to change their views. ‘The local authorities have always assumed the best way to help the Punan is to get them out of the forests and turn them into farmers,’ explains ethno-ecologist Edmond Dounias. ‘However, our research suggests this isn’t necessarily the best solution.’

Dounias and Levang believe that the experience of another remote – but accessible – settlement provides a telling example of how Punan can survive, and survive well, far from places like Malinau. The village of Sule Pipe has an airstrip. It also has a health dispensary and a permanent school. The Upper Tubu has none of these, and it shows. Sule Pipe has levels of infant mortality similar to Respen, but a third of those of the Upper Tubu. The children of Sule Pipe are much better educated than those of the Upper Tubu, and household incomes are three times higher. ‘Supplying remote communities with an airstrip provides access to urban facilities, such as health care, without opening up the area to excessive exploitation by outsiders,’ says Dounias.

In the meantime, strenuous efforts are being made to improve the health of the Punan living in the Upper Tubu. In 2005, a memorandum of understanding was signed between CIFOR, the local health authority in Malinau and Médecins du Monde, which has recently begun work among remote and seriously disadvantaged communities in Indonesia. Doctors from Médecins du Monde have made lengthy visits to the Upper Tubu, accompanied by CIFOR researchers, and five young Punan have been trained as health assistants. The individual health profiles provided by the research team have provided the doc¬tors and health assistants with valuable background information.

Forest dwellers have always had to adapt to changes in forest eco-systems, but the changes they face today are much more dramatic than those of the past. Now they must cope with the cash economy, deforestation and other changes, including their own shift from a nomadic to sedentary lifestyle. Survival requires new strategies and a new way of thinking. ‘We believe our research can help forest dwellers evaluate the choices open to them, so that they can make decisions which not only satisfy their immediate needs, but those of future generations,’ says Dounias.