Meet the brave women firefighters in Borneo battling toxic peatland fires and El Niño to defend their homes, rainforests, and local Indonesian communities.

In the village of Sungai Putri on the Indonesian side of Borneo, local women are stepping up to defend their homes and rainforests from devastating peatland fires. Wearing heavy rubber boots and full protective safety gear, volunteers like Irma ride motorbikes directly into hazardous fire zones where the air is thick with choking, toxic smoke.

This report is based on original documentation titled “The women saving Borneo: battling fire, patriarchy and super El Niño on Indonesia’s peatland frontlines”, featuring words and photography by Garry Lotulung.

Frontline Emergency Response in Kalimantan

The island of Borneo, particularly the Kalimantan region, faces recurrent environmental threats from peatland fires. These blazes are frequently amplified by severe weather patterns like super El Niño, which dry out vast tracts of carbon-rich peat soil and turn dense tropical forests into volatile tinderboxes.

When fires ignite, the smoke creates extreme health risks for surrounding communities. Rather than remaining passive during crisis events, local mothers have mobilized into organized volunteer firefighting units to tackle blazes early before they spread uncontrollably.

Breaking Barriers and Protecting Communities

Beyond the physical danger of battling flames, these female firefighters face societal hurdles. In many rural communities across the region, emergency response and disaster management have traditionally been viewed as male domains. By donning firefighting gear and heading directly to the frontlines, these volunteers are actively challenging deep-seated patriarchal norms.

Field observations indicate that the presence of organized women responders provides several distinct advantages for local resilience:

• Rapid Mobilization: Being embedded in local villages allows volunteers to detect smoke and respond rapidly to emerging hotspots.
• Community Health Protection: Early containment helps reduce the spread of toxic haze, directly protecting children and vulnerable residents from severe respiratory illness.
• Empowerment and Leadership: Women taking on key emergency roles inspires broader civic participation across peatland communities.

As climate conditions become increasingly unpredictable, the courageous efforts of Irma and her fellow volunteers demonstrate how local leadership on the frontlines remains crucial to safeguarding Borneo’s vulnerable ecosystems.