Why Indonesia Must Make an Energy Transition?

Indonesia Has an Emission Burden That Must Be Reduced

There’s a perception:
“Developed countries should bear more responsibility for reducing global emissions. After all, they’ve been polluting the earth since the industrial revolution.”

However:
The world is currently striving to reduce its emissions, and Indonesia, ranked among the top 10 emitting countries, has a responsibility to significantly reduce its emissions.

Explanation

  1. The responsibility for reducing global emissions lies with all countries, especially those that have ratified the Paris Agreement, including Indonesia.
  2. As a signatory and ratifier of the Paris Agreement, Indonesia is bound by several obligations to mitigate the climate crisis. This includes adopting appropriate national policies to mitigate climate change by limiting anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and protecting and enhancing nature’s ability to absorb these emissions.

IESR Words

  • “Although developed countries have a higher historical burden to reduce emissions, this does not mean that Indonesia is free from responsibility for climate change. In fact, the world is currently striving to reduce the level of emissions released into the atmosphere, and Indonesia is among the top ten largest emitters in the world. Therefore, Indonesia still has an obligation to reduce emissions into the atmosphere, especially those from coal-fired power plants.”
    – Arief Rosadi, Climate and Energy Diplomacy Program Manager, IESR

Description for

Children (14-18 years):

Imagine a house with several rooms, such as a terrace, living room, parents’ bedroom, children’s bedroom, kitchen, and back porch. Each person in the house is responsible for one room. With each person’s diverse activities, cleaning each room doesn’t have to wait for each other. Since everyone has agreed to keep the house clean, and each family member is willing to accept responsibility for each room, they must fulfill their responsibilities. When the house is clean and tidy, the occupants will feel comfortable living there.

Description for

Adults (19 years and over):

Documentary video reference: How coal made us rich — and why it needs to go | TED-Ed

  1. The video explains that burning coal through coal-fired power plants has an impact on air pollution and increased greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. To significantly reduce GHG emissions and keep global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius, coal use must be phased out.
  2. The energy transition must occur quickly and fairly. The decision to transition quickly will result in lower transition costs and provide communities living in a coal-fired economy with more time to adapt.