The Story of Agus, the Translators, and the Mangroves

When I first heard about the Christian Climate Observers Program, I discovered that one of the participating organizations is SIL International, which is a partner organization of Wycliffe Bible Translators. This puzzled me. I couldn’t figure out how their translation work would lead them into care for creation.

Meeting Marie and Alejandra

So when I finally got to Dubai, and I met two people from SIL, Alejandra Guajardo from Peru and Marie South from England, I wanted to know more. I found out that SIL works with indigenous peoples and local communities, serving them in ways that go beyond translation. For example, they have a tool that allows people to create books in their language.

One of the books I found referenced on the SIL site is an 8-page story book for the Bariai elementary schools published in Bambak Village, Papua New Guinea. The book is called “Taine Tila Bare Iloleai” or, “The Women Go to the Mangrove.”

Agus and the Mangroves

I would like to read that book, because I wonder if it relates to a story that Marie shared with me when we arrived at COP28 after a long journey on the metro. The story involves Agus, a man from from Ambai village in Papua, Indonesia. Agus wondered why ocean tides were now damaging coastal areas of his village, a community that had weathered storms for centuries. Through a language-based development program of SIL, Agus and others were able to learn about the negative effects of chopping down the mangrove forests that had existed throughout the coastal region. These mangroves, and the ecosystems that flourished in them, supported fisheries, provided substances used in traditional medicines, and created a natural breakwater. One study showed mangrove ecosystems can lower the height of incoming waves by 50 to 90 percent.

That revelation spurred Agus and his brother to begin replanting mangroves on the mudflats around their village. Other family members and then other clan members joined in. This drew the attention of the Indonesian government, which began a dialog about creating a long-term mangrove restoration effort. To date, the community has planted 60 acres of mangrove forests. As other communities along the coast heard about the recovery of fisheries due to the mangroves, they began their own mangrove planting projects.

Learning from Indigenous People

The more I learn about damage done to creation, the more I think that indigenous people have wisdom that we all could benefit from. It’s good to hear what SIL is doing to remove language barriers that would otherwise keep local people isolated. I hope that through efforts like theirs not only can indigenous people like Agus learn from others, but also non-indigenous people like me can learn from them.