By: Sela Ola Olangi Barus

In preserving protected animals, the role of forest rangers is very important. Almost every day, the rangers patrol the forest to ensure that the animals and their habitats are maintained and there are no disturbing activities. Not infrequently in their patrols, rangers encounter various difficulties, ranging from unfriendly weather conditions to accidentally being attacked by animals in the forest. This fairly extreme task does require physical ability, as well as special knowledge, so not many people want to become a ranger.

However, not Iwan "Podol" who has dedicated himself to protecting the Ujung Kulon National Park (TNUK) since the 1900s. Starting from a bus conductor who doubles as a volunteer at TNUK, now Ridwan Setiawan, the real name of Kang Iwan "Podol", has even earned the nickname Abah Rhino Indonesia. His nickname was obtained because of his experience and desire to learn the ins and outs of the one-horned animal. Kang Iwan has even "graduated" several doctoral graduates from abroad for research on Javan Rhinos.

Regarding the nickname "Podol" on his name, he admitted that he was initially unhappy with the name. As a native of Banten, podol means the feces of living things. The nickname was given to him by Tri Wibowo, the head of TNUK in the 2000s. At that time he was part of the Rhino Monitoring and Protection Unit, part of TNUK's Indonesian Rhino Conservation Program, and often found rhino tracks and researched rhino dung. Since then, people have known him as Iwan "Podol" rather than his real name.
His experience as a rhino ranger in TNUK is undoubted. When he became a WWF-Indonesia volunteer and Javan Rhino guide in TNUK, he memorized the TNUK area very well. Thus, in 2006 WWF-Indonesia appointed Kang Iwan "Podol" as WWF-Indonesia's Camera Trap Field Coordinator. At that time he was tasked with counting the number of Javan Rhinos in Ujung Kulon and was lucky to encounter the solitary animal. Not only that, he even formed a team that specialized in examining rhino feces for DNA research. No wonder, then, that he often met the animal with the Latin name Rhinoceros sondaicus.

Not only in TNKU, Iwan "Podol" also has experience in the forests of Sumatra and Kalimantan to research the Javan Rhino's sibling, the Sumatran Rhino. In carrying out his duties, it is not uncommon for Kang Iwan "Podol" to have to leave his wife and two children for weeks and even months. However, Kang Iwan admits that this is not an obstacle, because his small family also supports and is proud of his work.

His persistence in the conservation of this one-horned rhino has made him now appointed by WWF-Indonesia as Species Coordinator of WWF Ujung Kulon Project and named as Rhino Expert. Even now, Kang Iwan is helping rhino conservation in Kalimantan. Many people have great respect for him, even the environmental community in Aceh made a T-shirt with Iwan's face "Podol" with the words "Abah Rhino Indonesia".