The Social Engineering of Land Resource Based on Local Wisdom: Developing Ecotourism by Designating Nagari as Customary Village

The land is the source of life and the basis of culture and civilization. Indigenous peoples are inseparable from the land, which has supported them for generations, hundreds, or even thousands of years. As khalifatu fi al ardh, humans, including indigenous people, manage their land and natural environment based on their local wisdom. In Minangkabau, the customary community unit is called Nagari. However, the socio-political and cultural systems of the Nagari of indigenous people was degraded and threatened with extinction. Whereas the government, through the 1945 Constitution, has recognized and guaranteed the continuity of the customary law community unit in the Republic of Indonesia. However, Law Number 6 of 2014 concerning villages (and traditional villages), supported by Regional Regulation Number 7 of 2018 concerning Nagari, has opened up opportunities for Nagari to reconstruct, functionalize, and revitalize. Nagari cannot rebuild, but the selective use of these opportunities is very relevant to developing nature and environment-based tourism (Ecotourism). This paper analyzes and describes these two aspects and encourages the expedition regarding the Nagari as a traditional village as a tourist village. That way, the development of Nagari and ecotourism will be in line with the principles of conservation, local wisdom, community participation, and economic benefits for local indigenous peoples.