Why do people join the Payment for Ecosystem Services Scheme? A lesson learnt of PES in Mbeliling Landscape, Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Abstract

Payment Environment Services are mainly intended with several main focuses, first, as an alternative system for sustainable land production and management. Second, as an effort to improve the welfare of land managers. Third, as ecosystem and environmental protection, and water resource management for sustainable socio-economic and ecological development. Achieving these noble goals requires the participation of the community, especially farmers who manage land within the structural order of water resources in the form of watersheds and forest ecosystems. On Flores Island, the Mbeliling ecosystem area has water resources for community life. Community participation for sustainable water resource management showed excellent and consistent participation. Efforts to PES from the Mbeliling ecosystem have received commitments from parties. This article presents strong evidence of stakeholders' participation in the Mbeliling ecosystem. The approach taken in this study was observation at the community level to find out perspectives on the importance of community roles, determining governance structures, and involvement of other parties such as the government and the private sector. This study found that the level of community participation showed a positive attitude from the role of the community as a trust fund board, advisory board, and technical monitoring body, as well as from the role of private hotel owners who contributed, and there was a positive attitude from the community.