Uma Powatua Customary Territory Map: Strategies for Living Space Protection and Cultural Preservation 

The Uma Powatua Indigenous Community in Kulawi District, Sigi Regency, Central Sulawesi Province, is currently facing social, cultural, and environmental challenges. One of the main challenges is the decreasing use of local languages ​​by the younger generation and the fading of cultural traditions due to their low interest in preserving them amidst the tide of modernization. Furthermore, the younger generation is also starting to lose their understanding of local knowledge, which has long been a vital part of indigenous life. Furthermore, the existence of customary territories within state-owned protected forests also limits the community's access to livelihoods, which have traditionally depended on forest products and their customary territories.

In response to this situation, the Uma Powatua Indigenous Community is promoting a customary territory mapping initiative as a crucial step to strengthen the protection and recognition of indigenous peoples' rights. Participatory mapping is understood not only as a technical activity to determine territorial boundaries, but also as a process of strengthening identity and a strategy for protecting indigenous territories. This initiative is being collectively implemented with the assistance of the Regional Management of the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (PD). AMAN) Kulawi and involving the Traditional Stakeholders of the Uma Powatua Traditional Community, Village Government, Bhabinkamtibmas and the Sigi Regency DPRD in the traditional deliberation process for boundary agreements as well as the verification process for mapping results and map approval.

This initiative successfully mapped 13.256,19 hectares of indigenous territories, increasing the sense of security and confidence of Indigenous Peoples and their younger generations in protecting and defending their territories. The resulting indigenous territory maps are also interpreted as symbols of the indigenous people's struggle to affirm their identity, rights, and ancestral heritage, which must be preserved and passed on to future generations. Furthermore, the maps are considered crucial as tools to protect land, forests, and cultures, ensuring their survival amidst various threats to indigenous peoples' living spaces.

In the long term, mapping indigenous territories aims to provide certainty about boundaries, protect community rights and livelihoods, facilitate conflict resolution, and serve as the basis for government recognition, designation, and protection of indigenous territories. Furthermore, mapping provides a snapshot of the social, cultural, economic, and environmental conditions of indigenous communities, which serves as a basis for developing more targeted regional management plans. Through this process, the Uma Powatua Indigenous Community reaffirms its commitment to preserving its ancestral heritage, protecting its forests, and passing on its cultural values ​​to future generations.