With declining forest cover in Sumatra and Kalimantan, Papua is the last frontier of intact forest in Indonesia. Indonesian Papua—which occupies the western half of New Guinea, the world's second-largest island, and includes the provinces of Papua and West Papua—held 38 percent of Indonesia's remaining primary forest in 2012. Home to one of the most biodiverse forests on Earth, as many as 20,000 plant species, 602 birds, 125 mammals and 223 reptiles live in Indonesian Papua. The forest also supports local people who rely on it for traditional sources of livelihood.

Tree cover loss peaked in Papua in 2015—and regional leaders responded. In 2015 West Papua became the world's first conservation province, a commitment echoed by the current governor in 2018. He also plans to review all forestry and plantations licenses across West Papua Province. Meanwhile, neighboring Papua Province has already established a roadmap document, Papua Province Vision by 2100, which aims to maintain 90 percent forest cover over the entire province while achieving low-carbon development objectives.