A conservation programme in Indonesia is paying villagers to photograph wildlife instead of hunting it, creating a new source of income while helping protect endangered species in the forests of Borneo.
The KehatiKu project operates in nine villages in West Kalimantan, where residents can earn money by submitting photographs or recordings of wild animals. The initiative is designed to make living wildlife more valuable to local communities than animals that are captured or killed.
Payments range from 5,000 rupiah for sightings of common birds to as much as 130,000 rupiah for an endangered orangutan.
Some of the most successful wildlife observers can earn up to 10 million rupiah a month, several times the income of an average farm worker. For many participants, the activity provides additional earnings alongside farming.
The programme is run by environmental consultancy Borneo Futures and began about two years ago. Besides providing income, it collects information about wildlife populations and where different species are found.
Participants upload photographs and recordings through a mobile application. An artificial intelligence system helps assess the submissions before human verification, with more than 350,000 observations submitted so far. About half have been validated and paid for.
The scheme is already influencing attitudes towards wildlife. Two participating villages have voluntarily introduced hunting bans since the project began, according to organisers.
The change is particularly significant in communities where hunting wild birds has traditionally provided an income. Under the programme, villagers can earn money by observing the same animals without removing them from the ecosystem.
The project covers 73 species, including birds, monkeys, wild cats and deer. Participants often combine wildlife observations with their normal work in farms and plantations.
The programme has also provided an additional source of income for women. One participant said the earnings had helped her become more financially independent, while others have used their payments for household purchases and education.
Conservation researchers say the approach could offer advantages over traditional programmes that impose conservation rules without providing direct economic incentives to local communities. However, they have also warned that maintaining funding will be important to ensure the behavioural changes continue.
Borneo Futures currently has funding secured through 2028, with two additional villages expected to join the programme in October.
For communities taking part, the project is gradually changing the way wildlife is viewed. Animals that were once hunted for income are increasingly being treated as a source of continuing value while they remain alive in their natural environment.
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