When moms step out of the kitchen and become forest firefighters

Not long ago, a Korean reality show called "Siren's Call: Fire Island Survival" received great acclaim. It is an all-female lineup - 24 female contestants, including police officers, firefighters, bodyguards, soldiers, athletes and stuntmen. They are divided into groups according to their professions and fight for survival on an isolated island.

The firefighters were particularly popular . They said they were "people who had seen hell" and tried their best to put out fires and save lives. They won three consecutive competitions on the show, showing their extraordinary strength.

The first one on the right is a member of the firefighting team, who is demonstrating his old profession - putting out fires. And the members have to light the fire themselves, well, light the fire and put it out by themselves｜Variety show screenshot

Many viewers expressed their excitement at seeing so many professional women on the show at once - especially since these professions are almost always assumed to be male fields.

Today, more and more women are breaking boundaries . In Borneo, there is even an all-female fire brigade that is protecting the forests of Borneo.

Female firefighters investigating fires on motorcycles｜internationalanimalrescue.org

Forest covered by wildfire

Borneo is the world's third largest island, located in Southeast Asia and encompassing countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. It is one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth and home to rare and endangered species such as orangutans.

Borneo's tropical rainforests are also huge carbon reservoirs. Forests absorb carbon dioxide, which can mitigate global climate change and are crucial to global climate stability.

Unfortunately, this important forest is plagued by frequent fires .

Female firefighters at a fire scene | theorangutanproject.org

Half of Borneo's forests disappeared between 1973 and 2015. In addition to intensive logging, a common cause is "slash-and-burn agriculture." Farmers burn forests to clear land for arable land, and once they get out of control, forest fires will occur . With the emergence of extremely hot and dry weather, forests are more likely to catch fire.

Each forest fire destroys thousands of hectares of forest and releases huge amounts of carbon into the atmosphere . The peat swamp forests of Borneo store about 500 tons of carbon per hectare, and in a particularly severe year, up to 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide can be released into the atmosphere.

Forest fires not only damage the environment, but also seriously affect the lives of residents. During the dry season, Borneo is shrouded in lingering smoke, the air quality is worrying, children and the elderly have a high incidence of respiratory diseases, and airports and schools are forced to close.

Borneo is shrouded in smoke | Tuchong Creative

To help contain the fires, a group of all-female firefighters are taking action for their homes - known as "The Power of Mama".

Out of the kitchen and into the woods

This all-female fire brigade is composed of 50 women from two villages in West Kalimantan, Borneo . They have received fire training and are equipped with mobile phones. They ride motorcycles to the streets to investigate fires on a daily basis. When they encounter farmers burning forests to clear land, they will also persuade them to realize the dangers of slash-and-burn farming and prevent fires .

This dangerous job was not paid, but the team members persisted anyway.

Before this job, firefighters played the "traditional female role", staying at home to manage the family and raise children. Before becoming firefighters, few of them had ever found a job outside their families . But now, they are on the front line of protecting the forest.

This is a process of gradually feeling your own power.

Female firefighters｜positive.news

The project was co-founded by Karmele Llano Sanchez, director of International Animal Rescue Indonesia (YIARI), whose mission is to protect the biodiversity of the rainforest.

Why did you think of establishing a women's fire brigade?

Borneo suffered devastating wildfires in 2015 and 2019, many of which were caused by farmers resorting to slash-and-burn methods that got out of control, Sanchez said.

The farmers wouldn't listen to conservation groups, but Sanchez found they were willing to listen to his wife . "That's where the power of moms starts," Sanchez said.

"Mom Power" members say they now have more confidence in their community | positive.news

Two women working at YIARI, Ibu Siti and Ibu Maimun, are well respected in the community and volunteer to go out on patrol and persuade farmers. When they discover a fire, they immediately report it to the authorities and receive a response. Their efforts led to the establishment of the first two teams of women firefighters in 2021 .

Although there is no money to be made, the firefighters still persisted. One of the volunteers is 42 years old. She thinks this kind of work is very meaningful - not only has she learned about protecting the environment, but she can also learn how to organize community forces and teach people how to become better .

Female firefighters who work hard to prevent fires are being seen and respected by more and more community members.

More and more women's conservation organizations

Forming a "women's army" to protect the ecology, "mom's power" is not an isolated case.

There was once an Indian female biologist who led a conservation team of more than 10,000 women with no professional background to save the endangered bird, the greater adjutant stork .

Purnima Devi Barman won the 2022 "Earth Champion Award" for organizing the protection of the greater adjutant stork, the highest environmental honor awarded by the United Nations. ｜@Purnima Devi Barman/Facebook

Dr. Barman, who protects the adjutant stork, once said that the field of wildlife protection is still dominated by men . She heard countless dissuasion voices during her studies and career, and even her family did not want her to suffer in the wild. But she not only persisted, but also led an all-female conservation team, which increased the number of adjutant storks' nests several times .

Many women care about the environment, ecology, and the long-term well-being of others. Driven by these passions, they step out of their small families to protect peatlands, rainforests, and orangutans. They are needed and valued by the entire community, and they are also changing people's expectations of the so-called "traditional female roles."

The power of mothers, the power of women｜theorangutanproject.org

Traditionally, women are viewed as nurturers and caregivers, but they can also be powerful protectors. The umbrella they spread their wings to form not only protects their own families, but also extends to communities, wildlife, and the ecological environment...

"We've always known that when you put an opportunity in front of smart, hard-working women, they'll go for it ," said Gail Campbell-Smith, PhD, a consultant to YIARI.

References

[1]The Orangutan Project. (2023). Meet the Power of Mama, Borneo's first women ranger teams. PR Newswire. Retrieved from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/meet-the-power-of-mama-borneos-first-women-ranger-teams-301740279.html

[2]'They are outstanding': the female firefighters protecting Borneo's forests. (2023, July 03). Retrieved from https://www.positive.news/society/the-female-firefighters-protecting-borneos-forests

[3]IAR celebrates first female firefighters in Borneo on International Women's Day | International Animal Rescue. (2023, July 06). Retrieved from https://www.internationalanimalrescue.org/news/iar-celebrates-first-female-firefighters-borneo-international-womens-day#

[4]Who are The Power of Mama? | International Animal Rescue. (2023, July 06). Retrieved from https://www.internationalanimalrescue.org/news/who-are-power-mama

[5]YIARI Power of Mama. (2023, July 06). Retrieved from https://www.theorangutanproject.org/project-summaries/yiari-power-of-mama

Author: Xiu Beng Beng

Editor: You Shiyou, Heijiomeimei

This article comes from GuokrNature (ID: GuokrNature)

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