Congratulations, Farwiza!
TIME magazine has published the 2022 TIME100 Next list, which recognizes 100 rising stars from across industries and around the world.
We are thrilled that among them is 2016 Whitley Award winner Farwiza Farhan. Listed under the ‘leaders’ category, Farwiza has been recognised as an ’emerging leader, shaping the future and defining the next generation of leadership.’
As an environmental activist and Founder of Yayasan HAkA, Farwiza is fighting to save Sumatra’s irreplaceable Leuser Ecosystem and its biodiversity.
“Defending the ecosystem from industry, from development, from poachers, as Farwiza Farhan and her fellow activists are doing, is essential work,” — Dr Jane Goodall
The Leuser Ecosystem is recognised as one of the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas and at over 35 times the size of Singapore, this ancient ecosystem covers more than 26,000km².
It is the last place on earth where the Critically Endangered Sumatran orangutan, tiger, elephant and rhino coexist in the wild. It also provides ecosystem services that are vital for the survival of four million Acehnese people living in the surrounding areas.
Farwiza’s NGO is opposing illegal oil palm plantations and restoring deforested areas, tackling poaching and empowering local communities to participate in government land-use planning decisions.
In 2019, Farwiza was awarded further funding from WFN: through citizen lawsuits and advocacy, she and her team saw the permit to build the Tampur Hydrodam inside the Leuser ecosystem revoked in court – a dam which would have drowned 4,000ha of pristine rainforest, destroyed homes and livelihoods, and flooded prime orangutan habitat.
The 2022 TIME100 Next list is curated by TIME’s journalists and informed by their reporting. It is inspired by their flagship TIME100 list.
Congratulations, Farwiza!
