GEN-B: Mangroves Showcase Determination to Reduce Personal Emissions

Jakarta, March 27, 2024– A procession of individuals in moss green attire filled the streets around Gambir, Central Jakarta. Their attire bore the insignia of Generasi Energi Bersih (GEN-B) or Clean Energy Generation, and some carried placards encouraging onlookers to curb their personal emissions. With youthful faces, approximately 350 individuals gathered to address emissions contributing to the global climate crisis.

Supported by the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), Generasi Energi Bersih (GEN-B) South Jakarta in collaboration with GEN-B Jakarta, and Pertamina University’s Heuri Cosmos Research and Scientific Work Student Activity Unit, rallied the youth of Jakarta. Engaging in a leisurely march, they endeavored to reduce emissions by planting mangroves, departing from Gambir and converging on the mangrove ecotourism area at Pantai Indah Kapuk (4/3).

Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of IESR participated in the mangrove planting initiative. He stated that GEN-B initiated the activity, utilizing jejakkarbon.id to calculate daily emissions. GEN-B members then pooled funds and donations for carbon offsetting, including mangrove planting.

“Mangrove planting embodies the tangible concern of our youth, acknowledging their daily activities’ contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to awareness, they offset emissions through simple actions like turning off lights and minimizing waste. Planting mangroves aims to absorb emissions from the atmosphere,” explained Fabby.

Fabby expressed hope for similar initiatives nationwide, as GEN-B has expanded to nine cities across the country, including Bandung, Yogyakarta, Bali, and Bogor.

“Embracing emission reduction can be a shared ethos among GEN-B members. They serve as information sources and inspiration, fostering a generation aware of emission reduction to avert a climate crisis,” Fabby emphasized.

Riko Andriawan, Chairman of GEN-B South Jakarta, noted that planting 350 mangrove seedlings could significantly aid emission absorption.

“Emission reduction doesn’t require extravagance; it begins with self-awareness. Simple steps like using public transport, minimizing disposable plastics, and conserving electricity can contribute. Younger generations must grasp global warming and emission reduction concepts,” stated Riko.

Maya Lynn, GEN-B Indonesia Chairperson, underscored that the foremost challenge arises from individual actions.

“Awareness of our carbon footprint must start within. Websites like jejakkarbonku.id allow us to quantify our emissions, fostering consciousness about our environmental impact.”

Nur Azizah, representing Research and Scientific Work  Student Activity Unit Heuri Cosmos Universitas Pertamina, lauded the collaboration with GEN-B South Jakarta as a commendable opportunity. Their advocacy for renewable energy and emission reduction through research found tangible expression in mangrove planting, contributing to a greener planet.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Emissions are not Small

Dekarbonisasi emisi UKM

Jakarta, 14 March 2024 – The industrial sector has become the backbone of the Indonesian economy. Not only large industries, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are also the driving force of the national economy, including creating employment opportunities and contributing 60.5% to GDP.

However, this economic contribution figure is also accompanied by large, haunting emissions. Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform, in his opening remarks for the Webinar on Decarbonization Opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises in Indonesia and Learning from Global Experience, said that currently emissions from the SME industrial sector in 2023 are 216 million tons of CO2e.

“This figure is equivalent to one third of national industrial sector emissions. So, we need to seriously strive to decarbonize the SMEs industry because by prioritizing the sustainability aspect, SMEs will level up,” said Fabby.

As much as 95% of the SME sector’s emissions come from burning fossil fuels, the remaining 5% from burning waste. Large economic contributions need to be anticipated as a result of emissions output. If significant steps are not taken to reduce SME sector emissions, there is a possibility that SME emissions will increase in the future.

Abyan Hilmy Yafi, IESR Energy Data Analyst, explained in a survey carried out by IESR on 1000 SMEs throughout Indonesia that to start decarbonizing the SME industry there are several approaches from increasing understanding to technical solutions such as switching technology.

“For cross-sectors, there is a need to increase the understanding of SMEs about energy consumption and the emissions they emit. Active outreach is also needed to promote renewable energy. By sectoral approach, there are several technical recommendations such as the use of electric boilers in the textile and apparel industry,” he explained.

Bo Shen, Energy Environmental Policy Research, LBNL explained that globally, challenges to decarbonizing the SME industry include gaps in the knowledge of SME owners or managers regarding emissions, energy, or furthermore climate change and its relevance to their business.

“When SMEs already have sufficient knowledge and awareness to carry out decarbonization or reduce emissions from their business, finance becomes the next obstacle. The current upfront costs for, for example, looking for technology vendors or energy service providers (Energy Service Company – ESCO), are still quite high for the financial scale of SMEs,” explained Bo Shen.

Each country will use a different approach to encourage the decarbonization of their SMEs. In the United States, for example, governments are collaborating with universities to build industrial assessment centers.

“Apart from being useful for decarbonizing the SMEs industry, this approach also prepares skilled workers who have direct training opportunities in the SME industry,” explained Bo Shen.

Bo also added an interesting case from China which formed an initiative called Green Growth Together (GGT). This initiative encourages decarbonization of SMEs that are part of established product supply chains.

The established brands they supply require their entire supply chain network to implement emission reduction or decarbonization practices. This demand also comes with required financial assistance or technical assistance.

Ahmad Taufik from the Green Industry Center of the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) stated that Indonesian is currently experiencing challenges in the industrial sector. The contribution of the industrial sector to GDP continues to decline.

“Structurally, we are still continuing to improve various things, from industrial development, SME development, to ensuring the availability of environmentally friendly jobs (green jobs) and professional staff (green professionals),” said Taufik.

Towards COP-28: Indonesia Needs to Speak Out for Concrete Action in Addressing the Climate Crisis

Jakarta, November 2, 2023 -The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP-28) is scheduled to take place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) from November 30 to December 12, 2023. Guntur, a policy analyst from the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, has stated that the COP-28 meeting will include the first-ever global stocktake (GST) to evaluate the progress made in implementing the Paris Agreement.

 

“The GST is a crucial turning point for taking climate action in this critical decade, where the global community is aware that the implementation of the Paris Agreement is currently off track. For this reason, collaboration between various parties is needed in course-correcting efforts and improving solutions that are reflected in the results of the negotiations as well as in the COP28 Presidential Actions Agenda,” he explained at the Pijar Foundation Policy Playground event on Thursday (2/11/2023).

 

Guntur mentioned that COP28 is focused on several issues to fulfill the pillars of the Paris Agreement, particularly related to energy transition, especially renewable energy. Indonesia also continues to prepare the pavilion as soft diplomacy or diplomacy with a socio-cultural approach. This is also an effort to convey to the world the concrete steps and concrete actions that Indonesia has taken in reducing emissions and addressing climate change. In addition, Indonesia took the theme of climate action to be held in the Indonesian pavilion during the implementation of COP28. 

 

Arief Rosadi, Coordinator of Climate Diplomacy Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), said the climate crisis harms the world. Based on the UNFCCC report in 2022, global emissions will increase by almost 14% throughout this decade. The UNFCCC’s 2023 data shows that current policies will result in a temperature rise of 2.8°C by the end of the century.

 

“For this reason, Indonesia must take real action to address the climate crisis, and collective efforts are needed to address and deal with it by emphasizing the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC). There are currently various opportunities for young people to participate in international conventions despite possible challenges, such as closed processes and limited financial, regulatory, and logistical support. Citing data from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, most Indonesians feel morally obligated to protect the environment,” Arief said. 

 

Based on the agenda, Arief said, the delegation of the Republic of Indonesia (RI) will pay more attention to three global crises. These three crises, also known as the triple planetary crisis, include climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. These are significant global challenges that require bilateral and multilateral collaboration and cooperation to ensure that the Earth remains habitable for the future.