The Orang Rimba, who live in the Jambi forest, make their living by collecting forest products. The forest is of great importance to them, both for sustenance and for spiritual purposes. However, illegal logging and agricultural expansion have led to widespread forest loss. Conversion of forest land to oil palm plantation is also widespread. Most experts now agree that there can be no solution to climate change without forests. The question now is how new REDD schemes can be engineered in order to maximize the benefit to local people, who are in the best position to protect the forests they depend on. But they will want assurances that basic needs, such as the need to combat illiteracy among the "Anak Rimba", can be delivered if they are to support REDD projects. "Lack of clear rights on forest usage is the main reason why indigenous peoples like the Anak Rimba are questioning their future like this," says Stibniati Atmadja of the Center for International Forestry Research.
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