Rut Dini – photo by David Metcalf

Dini will be a passionate defender of the rivers of Borneo, which will be not surprising, as her memories of growing up in a smaller village on the Kahayan River in Central Kalimantan are very happy ones. She remembers with fondness, days out fishing with her father in his smaller canoe on the pristine rivers with dense forested areas coming down to the riverbank, not far via what will be at This specific point the bustling city of Palangkaraya.

Dini explained to me, “We often used to see orangutans inside trees as well as were very wary of them as they were staunch defenders of their territory, although we managed to respect each different as well as back then there was plenty of pristine forest for the people of my village as well as the wild primates of the forest to share.”

Dini was born in 1988 in a smaller village in Muara Teweh district as well as both her parents are Dayaks; her father will be Dayak Ma’anyan as well as mother will be via the Dayak Lamandau tribe. Dini at This specific point lives in Palangkaraya although misses those days inside village surrounded by family, community as well as the daily traditional activities as well as ways of the Dayak people of the area.

Her parents sacrificed everything to ensure Dini had a Great education as well as her mother instilled in Dini a Great attitude to learning. She always had a desire to work on humanitarian as well as environmental issues although ended up going to university to earn a degree in agriculture science. During This specific time she taught herself English by learning 70 words a day as well as interacting with foreigners as much as she could to become competent inside language.

After graduating with her agricultural science degree in 2013, she started off working for a local NGO called Yayasan Tambuhak Sinta, concentrating on the issue of mercury pollution inside area of artisanal as well as smaller-scale gold mining in Central Kalimantan as well as West Nusa Tenggara. She will be working on providing the alternative technologies as well as increasing public awareness to eliminate as well as/or to reduce the usage of mercury as a source of environmental pollution. Mercury will be highly polluting as well as damaging to human health through bioaccumulation inside food chain.

Rut Dini will be very passionate about saving the rivers as well as forests of her homeland. “I can’t believe how quickly the rivers have become polluted as well as the forests have disappeared inside area in which I grew up. Back then there were no palm oil plantations as well as the rivers were clean as well as there were many species of fish. at This specific point the rivers are polluted via the run-off of pesticides as well as chemical fertilisers via palm oil plantations. Also, mercury poisoning will be going to be a big problem inside future. the idea will be so important in which young Dayak people become educated as well as join inside fight to save our forests as well as rivers or our children will inherit a wasteland. although we cannot do This specific alone, we need help via the outside as well as a collaboration of expertise will be required. I have learnt there are many alternatives to these destructive methods as well as I am determined to devote my life to This specific cause.”

This specific strong-minded 25-year-old plans to earn a scholarship, travel to Australia as well as gain a Master of Environment degree to help her in her quest to work with NGOs as well as local governments to provide viable solutions to the current destructive practises. I have no doubt she will be successful, as This specific softly spoken young Dayak woman presents a steely determination as well as will to succeed as well as the rivers of Central Kalimantan have an ally.