Women farmers in Sumatra find a gentler way to keep elephants at bay

A women-led farming group in Sumatra's Tesso Nilo buffer zone has cut down on crop raids by planting dense citrus tree fences, which repel elephants naturally, instead of resorting to poison bait or electric fences used elsewhere in Indonesia.

Deforestation and oil palm expansion have destroyed more than three-quarters of the park's old-growth forest, pushing its roughly 150 Sumatran elephants into frequent conflict with nearby villages. The group, known as Perbani, also plants elephant-friendly fruit trees like jackfruit and stink beans to encourage coexistence rather than confrontation.

Beyond the citrus fences, the group runs leadership classes and a savings-and-loans scheme for its more than 30 members, and earned official recognition from Indonesia's forestry ministry in 2024. A University of Riau study credited the group with reframing women as problem solvers rather than victims in human-elephant conflict.

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