SALEMAN Merani often goes deep into the forest not far from his village in Wanimon, West Yapen, to collect bark from already harvested fruit trees. He gives the raw material to women weavers in his village, who then use it to make noken (the traditional woven bag of Papua).

He treks the forest once a week with a friend. "The forest is around seven kilometers from our village, so we use an ojek (motorcycle taxi) to reach the outskirts," he said. A