AAt a time when global environmental and

social changes happen at an unprecedented

pace, the issue of sustainable management

of natural resources has emerged as a criti-

cal one. The concern is about how to pro-

tect and sustainably manage natural

resources to achieve social equity and guar-

antee future global security. For this, it is

important to learn from past practices to

inform and develop better policies.

Social scientists have claimed a special role

for themselves in conducting research on

the connections between culture, the social

environment, and conservation^1. But has

research conducted in connection with

social, economic and environmental issues

produced useful results? Have lessons been

critically evaluated and used to plan new,

more appropriate strategies? Has social sci-

ence research been able to play a role in

promoting and protecting the social, cultur-

History, cculture aand cconservation

Social sscience rresearch aas aa ttool ffor cconservation— tthe

case oof KKayan MMentarang NNational PPark ((Indonesia)

Cristina EEghenter

Summary. Has research conducted in connection with social, economic and environmental issues been
used to design better policies? And have the lessons been critically evaluated and used to plan new, more
appropriate strategies? Has social science research played a role in promoting and protecting the social,
cultural, and economic interests of forest-dependent people? The experience of the Culture and
Conservation research program, a research endeavor that lasted seven years in the interior of East
Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), becomes a rare window from which to examine real and ideal contribu-
tions of social science research towards the achievement of environmental sustainability and social justice.
It also allows us to examine both failures and successes that have shaped the challenging partnership
between conservation managers and social scientists. This paper takes a look at how, and to what extent
research can be used as an analytical tool in conservation management, and its results can influence poli-
cies to make management of natural resources and protected areas more equitable and more effective.
The research results of the Culture and Conservation programme showed that local communities offer the
best chance for the sustainable management of the Kayan Mentarang conservation area, and that their
traditional institutions, if effectively supported and recognised, can contribute to deterring or minimizing
the risk of encroachment by outside parties. On the basis of this and other considerations, Kayan
Mentarang was the first national park in Indonesia to be granted official collaborative management status
in April 2002.

Figure 1. Women returning home from the

fields in Krayan Hulu. By being the prime collec-

tors of vegetables and other edible plants,

women contribute greatly to sustainability and

livelihood. (Courtesy Cristina Eghenter).