Each year a past Whitley Award winner is selected to receive the Whitley Gold Award – worth £120,000 of project funding – in recognition of their outstanding contribution to conservation.
Farwiza Farhan won a Whitley Award in 2016 for her work with NGO HAkA to conserve Sumatra’ s iconic species in the Leuser Ecosystem by enabling local communities to challenge development plans that risked the future of the forest, wildlife and people.
Supported with 2019 Continuation Funding, they halted the construction of a mega-dam which would have drowned 4,000 hectares of pristine forest, and scored a major victory against palm oil company, PT Kallista Allam, for illegally burning 1,000 hectares of forest. Farwiza and HAkA’ s grassroots solutions, including training 200 women in environmental advocacy and supporting village-level forest governance and sustainable livelihoods, have achieved global recognition.
At the end of 2025, Cyclone Senyar brought intense floods and landslides to Aceh after vulnerable watersheds impacted by extensive deforestation failed to cope with the extreme rainfall. With a State of Emergency declared, HAkA pivoted to prioritise an urgent humanitarian response.
Looking ahead, Farwiza and team will integrate forest monitoring, community empowerment, and high-level policy advocacy to reduce flood risk, strengthen resilience, and safeguard the Leuser Ecosystem.
IRREPLACEABLE RAINFOREST
The Leuser Ecosystem in Northern Sumatra’ s Aceh province is one of the world’s few remaining great rainforests and the last place on Earth where the Critically Endangered Sumatran tiger, elephant, rhino and orangutan co-exist in the wild. Spanning 2.7 million hectares, it’ s a source of water and livelihood for more than four million people. Leuser helps to stabilise the global climate by storing vast amounts of carbon, contributing to efforts to mitigate climate change that affect communities far beyond Indonesia. Leuser also holds deep cultural and historical significance; for generations, it has shaped the identity, stories, and livelihoods of local communities.
THE COST OF DEFORESTATION
Globally, extreme weather events are on the rise. Damage to the Leuser Ecosystem’ s forest and water catchments that happened more than 30 years ago, when Concession Rights were granted, still have devastating consequences today. Threats such as illegal logging, mining, and oil palm plantations weaken the rainforest’s natural ability to absorb water gradually and release it steadily. This increases climate vulnerability for downstream communities who depend on the forest to regulate floods and protect livelihoods. Rainwater became torrential runoff that destroyed lives, homes and habitat when Cyclone Senyar struck in November 2025. More than 1,000 people lost their lives, and ~400,000 people were displaced, mainly in Aceh.
RECOVERY TO FUTUREPROOFING
Linking watershed protection directly to disaster risk reduction and climate resilience, Farwiza and team will focus on monitoring two of Leuser’s biggest water catchments, Tamiang and Jambo Aye, that cover almost 1 million hectares and where flood impacts have been particularly severe. Combining satellite data with aerial surveys by community members, the team will engage government stakeholders to promote stronger protection of water catchments through improved spatial planning, and climate-sensitive policies. The project will support recovery in the aftermath of the disaster as well as empower local communities, through awareness programmes, training and support, to ensure a safer future for people and nature in Aceh.
Farwiza and HAkA will use the Whitley Gold Award to:
- Monitor forest loss and watershed damage using drones and geospatial mapping to inform strategic protection and help prevent future disasters
- Engage with government to shape post-disaster recovery, and long- term watershed management and forest conservation policies
- Mobilise environmental action through awareness programmes and local stewardship with communities, youth organisations and partner NGOs
“Lasting change is not driven by individuals alone, but by communities of people who choose every day to care, to protect, and to act.”
Image credits: HAkA (Banner, Youtube cover, Deforestation, drone flying, stop deforestation campaign), Ulet Ifanasti (Cyclone devastation), Rubama (Orangutan)
