New Guinea, Part 7: Galip nut drives community empowerment and forest conservation

<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">By 2025 the global, edible nut industry will be worth an estimated $2 billion. In Papua New Guinea (PNG), the traditional and plentiful staple, the galip nut (</span><em><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Canarium indicum</span></em><span data-preserver-spaces="true">), holds promise of tapping into that demand. Its relative ease of access for smallholder (non-commercial) farms means a new source of income for thousands of farmers across PNG. </span></p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">On this episode of Mongabay Explores, we speak with Dorothy Devine Luana, an entrepreneur from the province of East New Britain, whose company grows galip nuts using </span><a class="editor-rtfLink" href= "https://news.mongabay.com/series/global-agroforestry/" target= "_blank" rel="noopener"><span data-preserver-spaces= "true">agroforestry</span></a><span data-preserver-spaces="true">, a farming technique rooted in traditional knowledge that grows multiple cash crops alongside woody perennials.</span></p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">We also speak with Nora Devoe, research program manager for a special project focused on the galip nut at the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). This project has been funding more than a decade of research seeking to understand the viability and potential of the galip nut to drive the canarium industry in PNG and foster new markets for entrepreneurs and locals like Dorothy to sell the crop.</span></p> <p>If you missed the first six episodes of Mongabay Explores New Guinea, you can find them via the podcast provider of your choice, or locate all episodes of the Mongabay Explores podcast on our podcast homepage <a href= "https://news.mongabay.com/series/mongabay-explores-podcast/">here</a>. </p> <p><strong>Episode Artwork</strong>: <em>Tinganagalip Women Cooperative Group Chairwoman Caroline Misiel holds a handful of canarium. ACIAR has been supporting research into the development of a canarium industry in Papua New Gui