Development, pollution threaten Papuan women's mangrove forest in Indonesia

FILE - Berta Sanyi and Paula Hamadi, left, stand chest deep in water as they collect clams in a mangrove forest where only women are permitted to enter in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia, Oct. 2, 2024. FILE - Petronela Merauje prepares clams to cook at her house at Enggros village in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia, Oct. 2, 2024. FILE - Paula Hamadi cleans up trash as she collects clams in a mangrove forest where only women are permitted to enter in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia, Oct. 2, 2024.

On the southeastern coast of the city of Jayapura, Petronela Merauje walked from house to house in her floating village inviting women to join her the next morning in the surrounding mangrove forests.