Hutan Harimau is developing a Tiger Learning Center as a new model for conservation education, research, community engagement, knowledge exchange, and responsible ecotourism.
The initiative will begin in Mane, within the Ulu Masen landscape of Aceh, before expanding to Sangir District, Solok Selatan, West Sumatra. Together, these sites will form the foundation of a growing network of learning centers connecting tiger landscapes, communities, students, researchers, and conservation practitioners.
Starting in Mane
The first Tiger Learning Center will be established in Mane, a highland community within the Ulu Masen landscape.
Mane is a place where forests, wildlife, and human livelihoods are closely connected. The center will provide a space where local communities, Indonesian students, international students, researchers, conservation practitioners, and visitors can learn together about Sumatran tigers, tropical rainforest ecosystems, and living alongside wildlife.
The center will connect scientific approaches with Local and Traditional Ecological Knowledge, recognizing that communities are not simply beneficiaries of conservation, but knowledge holders and active partners in protecting their landscape.
From Mane to Solok Selatan
The experience and lessons developed in Mane will provide the foundation for a second center in Sangir District, Solok Selatan, West Sumatra, within the wider Kerinci Seblat–Batanghari tiger landscape.
The Solok Selatan center will build upon Hutan Harimau’s existing work with communities, conservation partners, community rangers, tiger monitoring, environmental education, sustainable livelihoods, and the Kampung Harimau/Tiger Village initiative. Rather than creating identical facilities, each center will reflect the ecological, cultural, and social characteristics of its landscape.
Mane will become the first learning hub in Ulu Masen.
Sangir will become the next learning hub in Kerinci Seblat
Together, they will demonstrate how the same conservation principles can be adapted to different tiger landscapes and communities.
A Field School for the Next Generation
An integrated internship and field-learning program will be a key component of the network. Students and young professionals from Indonesia and around the world will have opportunities to spend time in these landscapes and gain practical experiences in conservation. Learning will be based on mutual exchange. International participants will learn from Indonesian conservation practitioners and local communities, while local students and communities will have opportunities to exchange knowledge and experience with participants from other regions and countries.
Learning Beyond the Classroom
The centers will function as living classrooms, connecting indoor learning with real conservation activities in surrounding forests and villages. Participants may learn how camera traps are used to monitor tigers, how rangers conduct forest patrols, how biodiversity is documented, and how communities develop strategies for living alongside wildlife.
The landscape itself becomes part of the curriculum.
The forest becomes the field laboratory.
The community becomes a partner and teacher.
And conservation becomes something that is experienced rather than simply discussed.
Connecting Conservation and Livelihoods
Responsible ecotourism will complement education and conservation activities by creating opportunities for communities to benefit from protecting their natural and cultural heritage.
Visitors will be able to explore forests, learn about tiger conservation, experience local food and culture, stay with local families, discover sustainable livelihoods, and participate in community-led educational activities.
In Solok Selatan, this approach will connect with initiatives such as Kampung Harimau, tiger-friendly coffee, agroforestry, community conservation, and nature-based tourism.
Creating a Network Across Tiger Landscapes
The long-term vision is to develop a network of Tiger Learning Centers across important Sumatran tiger landscapes. The first two centers will provide an opportunity to test, learn, adapt, and demonstrate the model:
Mane, Ulu Masen — First Learning Center
Building a model for conservation learning and community engagement in Aceh.
Sangir, Solok Selatan — Second Learning Center
Expanding the model into the Kerinci Seblat–Batanghari tiger landscape.
From Mane to Solok Selatan, the initiative aims to demonstrate that protecting tigers and forests can also create meaningful opportunities for education, cultural exchange, community empowerment, research, and sustainable local development.
Over time, the network can connect communities and conservation practitioners across Sumatra, creating opportunities for knowledge exchange between different tiger landscapes.
A Vision for the Future
Hutan Harimau believes that conservation is strongest when knowledge, people, and nature come together.
The Tiger Learning Center is therefore not simply a building. It is a platform for people to learn, collaborate, conduct research, exchange knowledge, and take action for conservation.
Our vision is to create places where people do not simply learn about tigers and forests, but learn with the communities who protect them and within the landscapes they call home.
Learn together. Protect together. Thrive together.
The building is the classroom.
The village is the knowledge center.
The forest is the field laboratory.
And the tiger is our shared inspiration.