Conservation
1. The protection of natural environment.
2. The act of preventing something from being lost, wasted, damaged, or destroyed.
Those are the definition of conservation offered by my Oxford Advance Learner’s Dictionary. From the definitions above at least I can get a little idea of ‘conservation’ in English speaking country.

In Balinese culture the idea of ‘conservation’ equivalent to the idea of ‘kerti’ which means ‘order,’ ‘peace’ and ‘prosperity.’ How come? Let see how they connect each other. In the context of conservation the idea of ‘kerti’ is explained by expounding six kinds of ‘kerti,’ known as ‘sad kerti.’ They are Atma Kerti (soul), Samudra Kerti (ocean), Wana Kerti (forest), Danu Kerti (lake), Jagat Kerti (world), Jana Kerti (individual). Instead of ‘order,’ ‘peace’ and ‘prosperity,’ at this point, the word ‘kerti’ means ‘effort to achieve the prosperity of ….’

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Perched on the slope of Mount Mangu, 1100 meter above the sea level, the village Kiadan, naturally offers a cool climate and a foggy morning in the rainy season. With the majestic mount Mangu on the background and surrounded by the combination of dense forest, lush coffee plantation, and mesmerizing rice field, in short, the village of Kiadan offers stunningly beautiful views to behold.

This village now develops its ecotourism project known as JED or Village Ecotourism Project supported by Wisnu Foundation and Starling Kencana Tours. This is not a so-called “ecotourism” project, with has neither respect to the surrounding environment nor involvement of the community and all its profit goes to the travel agent pocket. The ecotourism project (JED) in Kiadan village is a grass root movement; it is designed and managed by the local Subak community with local guides, local foods and local accommodation.

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