Climate change is disrupting clove farming in Indonesia's Ternate, causing unpredictable rains and financial losses, forcing farmers to seek alternative incomes.
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00:00On the Indonesian island of Ternit, clove farming has shaped generations.
00:11But today, farmers face a new and growing threat, climate change.
00:17Once reliable harvests are now uncertain.
00:21Rainfall is more intense and unpredictable, damaging the delicate spice that depends on steady weather.
00:28Lakina, a 52-year-old farmer, shares her concern.
00:32She says, if it rains, it destroys the harvest.
00:37The cloves are damaged and turn white.
00:41If it rains, we wait until it's broken.
00:44It has to be damaged.
00:47At the beginning, it was good.
00:51But now, it's broken.
00:54Imba, another farmer, reflects on how the rain has changed her work.
01:03She says, it used to take three and a half days to dry clothes.
01:08Now, it takes up to six.
01:11Now, it takes up to five or six days to dry clothes.
01:23Drying, sorting, and selling clothes have become harder and less profitable.
01:29Yields are falling, and prices are unstable.
01:33Romin, a local supplier, explains how this affects quality and business.
01:40If it rains too much, the fruit will change the fruit.
01:45So, the production will definitely fail.
01:46And if it rains too much, the fruit will definitely be a little.
01:49Because the fruit will rot, all the fruit will rot.
01:52So, the fruit will be a little bit.
01:55Maybe 20-30% will be a little bit.
01:57Some farmers are losing hope.
02:02Johan Mehmood, a community leader, describes the growing challenges.
02:06He says, we are actually losing money.
02:09Sometimes, farmers do not even harvest because it costs too much for too little return.
02:16If we want to figure out, we are hurting in terms of planting.
02:21So, farmers are not losing money because it is a big amount of money.
02:31And then, the result is just a little bit.
02:33And so, in history and so on,
02:35that's why our parents are still losing money.
02:38But for many, clothes are more than income. They are identity, history and pride. Yet, the pressures are pushing some toward riskier alternatives.
03:08A.D. Rompas from Greenpeace warns, climate change is driving farmers to abandon the economy.
03:37The land enclaves and shifts to mining, which threatens sustainability.
03:41A.D. Rompas from Greenpeace warns, climate change is driving farmers to win the economy.
03:45A.D. Rompas from Greenpeace warns, climate change is driving farmers to win the economy.