the people: Pak Mis

Pak Mis (or Mr Mis) is a patient, quiet-spoken man. If you were to walk into a crowded room, he would probably be one of the last people you would notice.

And yet. Pak Mis is the leader of FKMPP, the community group that was facilitated by WWF and for which there are so many expectations. He also used to be the coordinator of the Bali Barat seaweed group.

As a youngster, Mis was raised by his grandparents in Sumberklampok, one of the villages that is part of Bali Barat National Park.

Tough childhood
Like many children with the same background, "…my education went no further than high school", explains Mis. Although by western standards the costs of education are low, there was simply not enough money for him to continue his education.

And so he turned to fishing, specifically milkfish cultivation, in an area inside Bali Barat National Park.

Life as a fisher, and...
This occupation was short lived. "Because of a new government policy, we could not continue working as fish cultivators in national park area. Therefore we had to change and become fishers with fishing rods and nets". To strengthen the rights of the fishers, Pak Mis and his friends grouped to form a forum.

...life as FKMPP leader
Now in his role as leader of FKMPP, Pak Mis has been propelled in a position that has many responsibilities. For example, he consults and coordinates with local parties (government, local and international agencies); plans, develops and evaluates programmes; and increases the capacity and organization of the forum through collaboration with other parties.

What Pak Mis finds the toughest is to overcome the outside pressures bearing on the Bali Barat National Park area: illegal fishers coming in and stripping the waters from their natural resources. So what makes it all worth it? "Many friends and experiences!", he says.

Looking into the future
Guided with the vision of realizing sustainable development in the coastal area of the National Park, Pak Mis hopes to contribute to the creation of regulations for fishing, and improved livelihoods and socio-cultural values.