2012 Annual Report - The Nature Conservancy

NATURE INSPIRES ACTION
Margaret Lou-Vike
Isabel Province, Solomon Islands
“Mainly, our lives are from Barora Faa. We live on Barora
Faa and depend on its resources. We use fish, swamp
taros; we plant cassavas and potatoes, coconuts, betel
nuts, sago palms. My whole life I was brought up on
Barora Faa’s environment.
If Barora Faa is logged … there could be lots of damage.
Elsewhere, corals have died. Swamp taros have died.
Some of the very beautiful islands have been destroyed.
It’s a very great concern.
Women are very important on conservation here
because we follow the matrilineal system. I have to fight
… for the next generations, for a sustainable use of the
resources that will help them have a good future. Nature
is the foundation for my leadership. Nature teaches
you to be a good leader. It teaches you to be humble; it
teaches you to be patient.”
Margaret Lou-Vike lives in the village of Kia in Solomon Islands’
Isabel Province. She is the mother of five and a key member of the
Mothers Union, a group of Kia women who have worked with the
Conservancy to raise their conservation awareness. They recently
successfully protested logging operations in the traditionally
owned Barora Faa forest.
Nature Matters I The Nature Conservancy 35