When the hills lose their trees, the water finds us faster

The floods in North Sumatra, Aceh, and West Sumatra didn’t happen in a vacuum.

Cyclone Senyar brought the rain —

but decades of deforestation, drained peatlands, and cleared mangroves shaped the disaster.

 

Forests don’t stop storms.

But they slow peak flows, stabilize slopes, and give communities precious minutes and meters of protection.

 

Mangroves reduce wave energy.

Peatlands store water instead of sending it downstream in a rush.

Trees hold the soil together.

 

If we want resilience, we must restore the natural systems that once defended us.