Indonesia is the largest archipelagic country in the world, with 17,000 islands of varying sizes and elevations, from lowlands to very high mountains, stretching more than 5000 km eastward from Sabang in Aceh to Merauke in Papua. Although occupying only 1.3% of the world’s land area, Indonesia possesses the third-largest rainforest and the second-highest level of biodiversity, with very high species diversity and endemism. However, during the last two decades, Indonesia has been known as a country with a high level of deforestation, a producer of smoke from burning forests and land, and a producer of carbon emissions. The aim of this paper is to review the environmental history and the long process of Indonesian forest management towards achieving environmental sustainability and community welfare. To do this, we analyze the milestones of Indonesian forest management history, present and future challenges, and provide strategic recommendations toward a viable Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) system. Our review showed that the history of forestry management in Indonesia has evolved through a long process, especially related to contestation over the control of natural resources and supporting policies and regulations. During the process, many efforts have been applied to reduce the deforestation rate, such as a moratorium on permitting primary natural forest and peat land, land rehabilitation and soil conservation, environmental protection, and other significant regulations. Therefore, these efforts should be maintained and improved continuously in the future due to their significant positive impacts on a variety of forest areas toward the achievement of viable SFM. Finally, we conclude that the Indonesian government has struggled to formulate sustainable forest management policies that balance economic, ecological, and social needs, among others, through developing and implementing social forestry instruments, developing and implementing human resource capacity, increasing community literacy, strengthening forest governance by eliminating ambiguity and overlapping regulations, simplification of bureaucracy, revitalization of traditional wisdom, and fair law enforcement.

Based on habitat preferences, in this study, we investigated the spatial distribution of the Magnolia genus in the northern part of Sulawesi. Habitat characteristics, especially temperature, precipitation, and topography, were determined using spatial analysis. The temperature and precipitation datasets were obtained from WorldClim BIO Variables V1, and topographical data were obtained from the Google Earth Engine. Data collection began in 2008–2009 and was completed in 2019–2020. In total, we analyzed 786 waypoints. The genus distribution was then predicted based on the most suitable habitat characteristics and mapped spatially. This study confirmed that Magnolia spp. distribution is affected by the annual temperature range, precipitation seasonality, and elevation. We discovered endemic and endangered species, Magnolia sulawesiana Brambach, Noot., and Culmsee, that were previously distributed exclusively in the central part of Sulawesi. Five waypoints of the endemic species were found in the conservation area of the Gunung Ambang Nature Reserve and on the border of Bogani Nani Wartabone Nation Park. In general, M. sulawesiana is distributed at higher elevations than other Magnolia species. This study provides a scientific basis for forest officers to develop in-situ and ex-situ conservation strategies and landscape protection measures to maintain the sustainable use of the genus, especially the sustainability of endemic species.

The typology of certain old shrubs assists with the selection of suitable plant species for rehabilitation. The carbon stock dynamic in old shrubs is fundamental due to their high uptake during the growth process phase. A plot of 100 m × 100 m (1 hectare) was created in each location, referring to the work of Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg. The plot was further divided into subsquares measuring 20 m × 20 m; in each plot, there were 25 subplots. Research results showed that the diversity index of old shrubs at the tree, pole, and seedling stage is 2.50–2.66, 1.23–1.50, and 0.67–1.11, respectively. For Kalimantan, the diversity index is lower than that on Sumatra Island, which is 1.64–1.80, 1.00–1.02, and 0.52–0.81, respectively. The carbon stock of the old shrub forest in Sumatra has an average of 36.61 Mg C per ha (standard deviation 14.54 Mg C per ha) to 72.50 Mg C per ha (standard deviation 25.61 Mg C per ha), while Kalimantan has an average of 47.94 Mg C per ha (standard deviation 13.30 Mg C per ha) to 144.07 Mg C per ha (standard deviation 54.64 Mg C per ha). The dynamics of the vegetation composition and carbon stock in each old shrub’s typology are considered when choosing a suitable model, including high carbon stock content, to provide optimal results for rehabilitation activities.

Indonesia has around 4000 wood species, and 10% (400) of species are categorized as commercial wood. One species is kayu kuku (Pericopsis mooniana Thwaites), native to Southeast Sulawesi. This species is considered a fancy wood used for sawn timber, veneer, plywood, carving, and furniture. The high demand for wood caused excessive logging and threatened its sustainability. In addition, planting P. mooniana has presented several challenges, including seedling production, viability and germination rate, nursery technology, and silviculture techniques. As a result, the genera of Pericopsis, including P. elata (Europe), P. mooniana (Sri Lanka), and P. angolenses (Africa), have been listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Appendix. Based on The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, P. mooniana is categorized as Vulnerable (A1cd). This conservation status has raised issues regarding its biodiversity, conservation, and sustainability in the near future. This paper aims to review the conservation of potential and endangered species of P. mooniana and highlight some efforts for its species conservation and sustainable use in Indonesia. The method used is a systematic literature review based on P. mooniana’s publication derived from various reputable journal sources and additional literature sources. The results revealed that the future demand for P. mooniana still increases significantly due to its excellent wood characteristics. This high demand should be balanced with both silviculture techniques and conservation efforts. The silviculture of P. mooniana has been improved through seed storage technology, improved viability and germination rates, proper micro and macro propagation, applying hormones, in vitro seed storage, improved nursery technology, and harvesting techniques. P. mooniana conservation can be conducted with both in situ and ex situ conservation efforts. In situ conservation is carried out by protecting its mother trees in natural conditions (i.e., Lamedae Nature Reserve) for producing good quality seeds and seedlings. Ex situ conservation is realized by planting seeds and seedlings to produce more wood through rehabilitating and restoring critical forests and lands due to its ability to adapt to marginal land and mitigate climate change. Other actions required for supporting ex situ conservation are preventing illegal logging, regeneration, conservation education, reforestation, agroforestry system applied in private and community lands, and industrial forest plantations.