Two people walking through dense forest vegetation, one carrying a large sack.

Biodiversity Monitoring and Wildlife Coexistence, Forest-Compatible Livelihoods and Community Enterprise

Community Livelihoods for Forest and River Conservation in Lubuk Bigau

A livelihood and river-conservation initiative that tested local essential-oil materials, strengthened community enterprise skills and linked fish restocking with customary river stewardship in Lubuk Bigau.

  • Lubuk Bigau Village, Kampar Kiri Hulu, Kampar
  • 2022 to 2023
  • Completed

Project overview

Project Overview

From 2022 to 2023, Hutanriau worked with communities in Lubuk Bigau to connect forest-compatible livelihoods with river conservation. The initiative tested local plant materials for essential-oil production, supported practical enterprise learning and strengthened the community's River Festival and lubuk larangan tradition.

Project snapshot

At a glance

15 materials

tested in distillation trials

12 materials

produced essential oils under trial conditions

3 trials

completed with LUSH-supported equipment

12,000 fish

released at four river locations during the River Festival

Why this work mattered

Project Context

Lubuk Bigau is a remote village in Kampar Kiri Hulu, close to the Bukit Rimbang Baling Wildlife Reserve. The final report describes limited road access and constraints in local education and health services. The surrounding forest and river systems are closely connected to daily life and local knowledge.

The project brought livelihood development and river activities into one programme. It combined participatory research on potential essential-oil plants with practical support for distillation, product development and smallholder organisation. Its river work centred on lubuk larangan, a local practice through which the Lubuk Bigau community conserves the village’s river and fish resources.

What we set out to do

Objectives

  • Identify and test locally found plant materials as potential sources of essential oils.
  • Improve essential-oil distillation practice and explore derivative products based on citronella.
  • Support community organisation, business planning and peer learning around smallholder enterprise.
  • Encourage river conservation and renew community attention to lubuk larangan traditions.

Delivery

What Hutanriau Did

  • Held a discussion and participatory forest search to identify potential essential-oil plant materials.
  • Tested 15 plant materials through distillation.
  • Conducted three distillation trials using equipment supported by LUSH and compared the process with traditional equipment.
  • Delivered two practical training sessions on citronella derivative products.
  • Delivered one organisational management session and one business-plan drafting session.
  • Organised a learning visit to a soap-processing business.
  • Released 12,000 juvenile fish, locally known as baung and garing or semah, at four river locations during the River Festival as a restocking activity for local lubuk larangan waters.
  • Held a River Festival with camping and children’s competitions in eight traditional games that were becoming less familiar in the village.

What changed and what we learned

Results and Learning

Testing identified 12 of 15 local plant materials that produced essential oils under trial conditions. Three comparison runs also recorded clearer oil and fuel use up to 10 per cent lower than with the traditional equipment, providing a practical basis for further product testing and skills development.

The River Festival connected fish restocking with the community’s lubuk larangan practice and renewed attention to traditional games. The release of 12,000 juvenile fish was a completed conservation activity; the project did not monitor subsequent fish population change.

Project album

Field Documentation

Selected photographs documenting project activities, field implementation, and community participation.

Close-up of a glass distillation setup with clear condensate dripping into a collection container.
Condensate from distilled plant material was collected during an essential-oil test in Lubuk Bigau.
Several people loading plant material into a metal distillation unit heated by a wood fire.
Community members operated distillation equipment supported through the LUSH grant in Lubuk Bigau.
Four women working with small containers, measuring cups and training materials at a table.
Women participants took part in a practical session on citronella derivative products in Lubuk Bigau.
A facilitator presenting entrepreneurship material beside an essential-oil training banner and projection screen.
An entrepreneurship session formed part of the project's training on essential oils and derivative products.
A group of people standing around a long table displaying soap products during a study visit.
Participants visited a soap-processing business to examine products and learn from an established enterprise.
A man in a red shirt releasing fish seedlings from a plastic bag into a shallow forest stream.
Participants released juvenile fish as part of a 12,000-fish restocking activity held during the River Festival across four river locations.
An aerial view of colourful tents and vehicles at a campsite bordered by palms and vegetation.
The River Festival included camping activities that brought participants together near Lubuk Bigau's river environment.
People taking part in a traditional outdoor game beside tents at a campsite.
Children competed in eight traditional games during the River Festival, bringing games that were becoming less familiar back into community activity.
A dirt road through green hills and forested mountains near Lubuk Bigau.
The forested hills around Lubuk Bigau form the wider setting for the project's livelihood and river conservation activities.
A participant adjusting hoses and metal components on a small-scale distillation setup outdoors.
A small-scale distillation setup was prepared for testing plant materials identified during the project.
Community members seated together while examining plant material samples during an essential-oil discussion in Lubuk Bigau.
Participants reviewed plant samples and discussed their potential for essential-oil testing before the distillation trials.
People standing beside a forest river pool during a juvenile fish release in Lubuk Bigau.
Community members released juvenile fish at river locations during the River Festival as a restocking activity for local lubuk larangan waters.

Continue exploring

Biodiversity Monitoring and Wildlife Coexistence, Forest-Compatible Livelihoods and Community Enterprise Integrated Village Development for a Sustainable Lubuk Bigau Forest-Compatible Livelihoods and Community Enterprise, Land Rights, Mapping and Local Governance Community Forest Management and Jernang-Based Livelihoods in Bukit Batabuh Ecosystem Restoration and Climate Adaptation Tree Planting and Maintenance in Tahura Sultan Syarif Hasyim

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