panacea

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Good (Sustainability) News from Indonesia #3 WANTED: Green Politicians

Pic courtesy

When COP adopts SDG’s “left no one behind” jargon, apparently it distills not only to the beneficiaries of the impacts, but also to the actors who will be involved on its implementations. Little that we heard, the parliament representatives from the UNFCCC parties are also invited and attended special forums where they get to learn from how the climate actions are being promoted and implemented in respective countries. The Indonesian Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR) have been the member of the Indonesian delegation since COP 21 in 2015, and continuing to host several sessions on the Indonesian Pavilion at COP.

One of the DPR representatives attending the last COP in Bonn was Mr. Satya Widya Yudha, the Deputy of Commission VII (Energy, Research & Technology, Environment). At the beginning of his speech at a public discussion on November 24th held by IESR on COP23 results and its implications to the Indonesian energy policy, I was (a bit) skeptical on what he has to say as we know the members of DPR do not have the most amazing history in conducting their duty. He then spoke about why is it crucial for the government executives to shift the paradigm on looking at the renewables challenge in Indonesia: stop seeing renewables as an alternative energy and to expect them to be financially competitive with the incumbent fossil energy. Renewables are the near-future mainstream energy resources around the globe, and we need to start to invest the effort and policy NOW in order to reap the economies of scale in the next 5 to 10 years. To my surprise, a major part of his talk was data-driven and scientific-based information on what the Commission VII is doing to push for more sustainable energy management in the country. Only after I googled his background and discovered that he is indeed an engineer and has been working in high level positions in various multi-national oil and gas corporates I can mumble a long “pantesaan”.

Having members of DPR with proper mindset and background in environmental issues who actually fight for the right policy on the climate actions sphere is decisive in charting the road ahead towards our inclusive and sustainable development. They are also pivotal in supporting the laws proposed by the ministries, for example to support favorable Feed in Tariff for the renewables and to revolutionize the permitting and bureaucratic processes for the renewables market.

When asked about why the Commission VII hasn’t been really successful in accelerating the renewables development, Pak Satya answered blatantly. “People often forget that members of DPR are basically all about electability. Having a member with relevant professional background is really a fortunate coincidence which rarely happens. That is why we are in dire needs of having more young professionals involved in politics, to have the right mindset and voice in legislative body who seek to speed up our development towards the right direction.”

Cannot say we disagree, right? :)

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Because, if we had it our way, we'd just settle. We'd just accept what we thought was our goal, what we thought we were chasing.

Jay Shetty

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Bawean (1) Indonesia memiliki sekitar 13.400 pulau (Badan Informasi Geospasial), namun mungkin tidak sampai sepuluh jari yang dapat kita sebutkan namanya. Sebagai bagian dari nusantara, ada ribuan pulau kecil yang belum banyak dikenal masyarakat, namun elok sekali alamnya. Sayangnya, pulau-pulau kecil ini kerap menghadapi masalah pengelolaan sampah yang berujung mencemari lingkungan dan laut di sekitarnya. Hal inilah yang memunculkan ide @bhumihara, agar pulau-pulau kecil di Indonesia tetap asri dan cantik, bersih dan mandiri energi hingga nanti nanti. . Ada 5 ide brilian finalis lainnya di www.passionville.id #ProjectPassion 2016. Klink link di bio untuk video lengkap 🙂

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Jakarta (2) Talking about disparity, the total power consumed along Sudirman and Thamrin Road in Jakarta equals to that of the entire East Kalimantan as a province. Which is why energy saving is a big deal 💡🔌

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Good (Sustainability) News from Indonesia #2

Let the count resumes.

2. Proklim – Program Kampung iklim (or translates to Climate Village Program)

One of the top-tier programs by the Directorate General of Climate Change (yes, we have such designated agency on climate change issues since 2015. Another big “finally!” shout-out), the Climate Village Program or Proklim strives to catalyze collaborative participation in enacting local climate actions and trimming the GHG emission at grass-roots level. It essentially aims to encourage the locals to increase their climate mitigation and adaptation capacity by providing awards, funding, technical assistance, and other sorts of guidance.

Distribution of the existing Climate Villages (source)

Proklim is endorsed and managed by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, run by the local government and community, and funded by APBN/APBD/local community/other legitimate resources. The regulation of Minister of Environment and Forestry No. 19/2012 serves as the guidelines for its implementation. Examples of Proklim efforts include flood and drought control, climate-induced diseases control, renewable energy generation, energy conservation, waste management, deforestation and forest fire mitigation, etc.

3. The Ministry of Environment and Forestry launched the National Registry System on Climate Change, which aims to:

Gather a comprehensive list of the climate adaptation and mitigation efforts in all layers,

Acknowledge the contribution of all stakeholders in carrying climate actions,

Provide an open and accessible data for public on the progress of NDC attainment, climate actions, and other climate relevant informations,

Achieve clarity, transparency, and understanding in the national climate actions registry.

The climate action strategy would be effective and efficient when all of its components are measurable and identified. The National Registry System allows all stakeholders to register their climate actions in order to accurately measure its impact in the national level, hence both lets no actions unrecorded and avoids double counting.

4. And btw, we have officially ratified the Paris Agreement by October 31st as the 85th party. The political will from the People’s Representative Council (DPR) for implementing the climate actions and sustainable approaches in the national development plan has been exceptionally strong, realizing our vulnerability to sea-level rise, forest and land fires, prolonged drought, and massive flood which are more evident these days.

Now the GOI shall be held accountable to achieve at least 29% GHG emission reduction from BAU by 2030. With lots of windows for support both technically and financially from international and national sources, it’s much easier for us to find ways we could contribute with. An act as simple as using little or no plastic at all, using public transport rather than private vehicles (on a city scale, this would mean much less CO2 emission, reduced local greenhouse phenomena, hence chiller temperature!), or eating less meat and more vegs would help. Feeling like going the extra miles? Find (or start!) initiatives in your surroundings where your help is needed, either by volunteering, teaching, donating, etc. Plus there’s a high chance you might meet new cool like-minded people to discuss and hang out with. B-)

Till the next series ;)

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Left a Horcrux somewhere here. (at Dolomiti)

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Good (Sustainability) News From Indonesia #1

Except for some hazy days on late August, the smoke due to the forest fire that usually takes place during the dry months is less in 2016 compared with the last one.

(pic) 

One good example shows why this could happen.

In Dusun Kampung Jawa, UNDP REDD+ in close cooperation with the locals and funded by the Norwegian government has transformed the traditional ditches into canals across the village to provide channels for water. What also worsen the fire usually is the fact that a private company in the village area which is located closer to the water source blocks the waterways completely during summer. Hence the area becomes very dry and easy to catch a fire.

The people learnt the hard way (and the looong way, 18+ continuous years) what catastrophe a prolonged dry season could bring with months of heavy smoke last year covering Riau and the neighboring provinces. Hence this year they realize the importance of not burning the trees in order to open the field for a new cropping cycle.

The company also no longer blocks the waterways during dry months.

Plus, the canals now provide water all year round for all purposes including hygiene, cooking, and putting off wildfire during summer.

This has proven that the forest fire could be avoided by sharing the same understanding and an active collaboration from all stakeholders.

 The Environmental Agency of Riau Province (Badan Lingkungan Hidup Provinsi) even set out a strategy of providing heavy equipment to clear the land to prevent people from burning trees.

My tree hugger side screams inside (NO DON’T EVEN LET THEM OPEN THAT FOREST!) but yeah… One need to do further research on to what extent the forest could be cleared for agriculture sustainably before starting to draw a red line on all forest borders.

 Ah, and the Peat Restoration Agency (Badan Restorasi Gambut) decided to launch an office in Pekanbaru to have a better eagle view on the high risk areas.

  Kudos to all stakeholders! Let’s keep the record to no burning nor wildfire at all from now on! \m/

Source: Riau Pos Sept 11th 2016.

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Hallstatt (1) Aaaand, finally we're here! It took almost 4 hours from Neu Ulm, where we stayed for the night, to Hallstatt. Arrived to a really nice (almost too warm) weather 🌞👬👭👬🏞

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Gunzburg (1) Heading to Österreich! #roadtrip

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Many help was lent, frequent pats on the shoulder whenever needed were there, a handful of invitations got skipped, and endless challenging discussions have shaped up the whole journey. Dank je wel allemaal! 🎓📜 Bismillah for the next round ☺️💪🏻😤🤔🤓 (at TU Delft)

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Good (Energy) News from Indonesia #2

It’s been a while, but let’s carry on with the count. This time we’re going to have a look at the pecuniary matters:

8. The Indonesian government established an agency responsible to pool climate change funds both from state budget and from international institutions, and to assign these funds to climate change related projects across the country: Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund (ICCTF) in 2009.

It also aims to mainstream climate change priorities into national and local development planning and policies, and implement GHG emissions mitigation measures and adaptation to climate change initiatives. ICCTF is the first national government trust fund institution in Indonesia as a follow up of Indonesian commitment in COP13 in Bali, and globally the first example of a national mechanism to fund climate change action. It has three thematic windows: energy, land-based mitigation, and adaptation and resilience. Currently a “Satuan Kerja”, this financial mechanism is working under the jurisdiction of Bappenas. All eligible Indonesian institutions have access to ICCTF funds through the executing agencies (line ministries/agencies). There’s “Apply for grants” page in the ICCTF website, encouraging the public and private institutions to apply for funding in sustainability projects.

Interesting ongoing projects that are currently overseen by ICCTF:

Strengthening Resilience of Coastal Community through Technology and Participatory Media. Targeted at fisherman community in four provinces: Yogyakarta, West Java, Banten, Sulawesi.

Public awareness and education project -> one of the deliverables is a curricula modules on climate change for all levels of formal schools in Indonesia. Another one is TV programs for knowledge diffusion of climate change adaptation and mitigation to general public. YEAY!

On a precaution note: in practice, however, its operationalisation has been slow, and with a current capitalisation of $11.4 million, it is a relatively small source of finance in a country that accesses hundreds of millions of dollars of concessional donor support for climate related purposes. 

9. We also have similar financial mechanism as ICCTF but with a wider scope, Millennium Challenge Account (MCA)-Indonesia. While ICCTF is designed to channel climate finance from various international actors, the MCA-Indonesia is dedicated as the framework for the US MCC grant in the country. Indonesia managed to won the US Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) grant in 2009, over Zambia and Colombia. The MCA-Indonesia then was established in 2011 under Bappenas as the framework for the grant implementation and supervision. The MCA-Indonesia is aimed to promote poverty reduction in Indonesia through sustainable economic growth.

It covers green prosperity, community-based health and nutrition, procurement modernization, and crosscutting activities. Climate change projects are accounted under green prosperity pillar. The five-year grant was first implemented in 2013, and will end in 2018. Grant products include:

RE Co-financing grant. Prioritized for projects in the scale of 1 – 10 MW, grid-connected

Green prosperity partnership grant. Two objectives: increasing household income and reducing land-based GHG by promoting utilization of renewable energy and sustainable natural resources management.

10. Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (Financial Services Authority) together with related ministries and international financial institutions published the “Roadmap for Sustainable Finance in Indonesia”, aimed to enhance the sustainable financing by financial institutions in the country.

What does this signify?

It means the government has a good intention to encourage and put pressure on financial institutions (including banks, capital market, and non-bank financial services) to support ventures whose portfolio is based on sustainability principles. The Roadmap will be translated to regulations by OJK, which has to be complied by the financial service institutions (FSI) operating in Indonesia. Now, if the roadmap is implemented and adopted by the financial service institutions, we will have the financial resources flowing to sustainable and climate-resilient business. Yeay!

(PS: Bank Artha Graha Internasional, Bank Central Asia (BCA), Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI), Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), Bank BRI Syariah, Bank Mandiri, and Bank Jawa Barat dan Banten are scheduled to implement these guidelines in January 2016.) 

The Roadmap outlines three strategic activities:

Increasing the supply of sustainable financing, by provision of incentives to FSIs to expand their green (financial) products, information sharing, increasing access to global public fund, etc.

Increasing the demand of sustainable financing, by building public awareness, providing education on green investment and financing.

Increasing oversight and coordination on the sustainable finance implementation, by strengthening risk management and law implementation, creating a forum for coordination between institutions, etc.

On the positive side: the roadmap defines annual targets and activity plans from 2015 to 2024 -> tangible. It also plans to oblige the financial service institutions to publish Sustainability Report for oversight and transparency -> accountability and social pressure are addressed. Besides, more work for the FSI -> more vacancies? :p

On a precaution note: the OJK itself should be held accountable on implementing the Roadmap à an implementation with updated goals/strategies report by OJK annually during the roadmap time frame is required.

11. Clean Energy Handbook by OJK

Still some good vibes from the financial ends, the OJK published guidelines for financing RE projects in Indonesia: from an overview of the potential technologies, existing regulations for clean energy, financing schemes, to evaluation approaches.

The focus for this first volume lies on mini-hydro, biomass, and biogas small-scale renewable energy projects. Not only useful for the financial services institutions, this book is equally, if not more, valuable to the project owners or to those who want to initiate a clean energy project in planning and securing the funding. It includes feasibility guidelines as well as risk management insights, therefore providing best practices for the project managers on working out the business plan for their project.

With all these financial mechanisms exist, one should expect a better environment for sustainable businesses and clean energy ventures to bloom. 

Taking an example in Uruguay’s renewable energy boost case: at the end of the day, it’s about the sustainability in the business scheme. If there is a secure business environment, investments on clean energy are very attractive since the operational and maintenance costs are low. Furthermore, the flourishing competition would further bring down the cost -> virtuous cycle?

Long-term (sustainable) policies ftw! :)

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“The simple truth about climate change is that, it is not new to the planet. But civilization is.”

The earth has survived and recovered from multiple climate disruptions. The question is, can we? 

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbjKcHPmxKQ)

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Zestful speech by Desi Anwar, upon receiving an Honorary Fellowship Award from her almamater, Univerisity of London.

Really enjoyed the whole chronicle about Indonesian media transformation that she conveyed: how the factual news from the streets was wrapped as “magazine report” titled Seputar Indonesia at the time when only screened content by the government can make it to the national TV channel, to how we are now one of the global biggest social media users with the region’s freest press environment.

Let’s not take the freedom to express that we are now enjoying for granted; and share information that is constructive, insightful, and accountable :)

PS: you might want to jump to 6:40 to directly watch the speech part (yes, the introduction for her great work is that long) ;)

PPS: check out a short clip about the history of Seputar Indonesia here. Can’t help to recall scenes from the Sorkin’s Newsroom in an instant! :p Credit goes to the old TV channel, RCTI.

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Good (Energy) News from Indonesia

Inspired by the famous GNFI viral feeds, why don’t we start one for the energy-related news? :)

Let’s start with some general updates:

1.     The National Energy Council (Dewan Energi Nasional) has been finalizing the General Plan on National Energy or Rencana Umum Energi Nasional (RUEN) as of late December 2015, which is the mission-translation of the National Policy on Energy or Kebijakan Energi Nasional (KEN). The RUEN will essentially serve as the guideline: containing quantifiable targets, dos and don’ts, to ensure energy security and independency in Indonesia. It is further derived to the provincial (RUED-P) and regency/municipality level (RUED), so that the programs don’t only hover on the central government agenda – without rigid and measurable executions – but also actually being implemented in the field.

One of the RUEN targets is to achieve nearly 100% electrification in 2020, reduce the GHG emission by 33% in 2025, and achieve 17% energy conservation by 2025. The National Energy Council has also initiated socialization of the RUED to the municipality of several regions including Balikpapan, Palu, Medan, and Sorong, which were also attended by the regional PLN and Pertamina authorities.

The involvement of important stakeholders indicated a good sign of integration and a good base to start, imho.

2.     We have a designated agency for catalyzing the renewable energy development from Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR), which is the Percepatan Pengembangan Energi baru Terbarukan (P2EBT) Team. They have been working on exploring the funding possibility for RE investments.

3.     Patriot Energi Program, which sends Indonesian youth talents to various corners in the nation that have limited/insufficient energy access and infrastructure. Their mission is to empower the local community in developing the domestic renewable energy potential, to be executed in a 1-year field assignment. The key role would be attributed to the local community, so that they would be able to launch, operate, and take care of the maintenance of the energy generation system, without reliance on external human resources.

4.     Establishment of Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy in Bali. One of its immediate objectives is to support the realization of the 35 GW power plant project, with 25% share of renewable energy resources. From the 17.3 GW that have been contracted so far, 2.7 GW are renewable energy based.

5.     The plan for developing a 5,000 MW Solar PV Power Plant in Bali.

6.     The energy conservation program is being promoted. The new paradigm of Energy Policy in Indonesia covers two aspects: energy conservation and energy diversification. Masyarakat Konservasi & Efisiensi Energi Indonesia (MASKEEI) was born out of the aspiration to achieve tangible results on the national energy security through a wise and efficient behavior in using the energy.

Indonesia has up to 30-35% energy conservation potential in the industrial, commercial, transportation, and domestic sectors. The Directorate General of Energy Conservation obliges the governmental buildings and facilities to implement the Energy Conservation Guideline, which is frequently audited. Albeit the government’s programs on this matter may not be widely visible to public, the fact that there is a community that promotes the implementation of conservation energy gives a vibrant breeze to engage the public’s concern.

7.     The Dirjen EBTKE website has been revamped, with routine updates and follow-ups. The useful updates including RE statistics database and progress report of the 1-year cabinet performance in energy programs.

The vibes from government’s policy in boosting the renewable energy implementation has never been any stronger. Let’s seize the momentum and help by critically support and follow up their progress! ;)

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Delft (3) The first-times are always exciting! Last night was the turn for "performing a traditional dance", as we danced Kicir-Kicir at the annual Indonesian cultural night, #Indelftnesia. It took four weeks and four flu's to get us on track 😅 Turns out the nervous feeling really worth the relieve and pleasure afterwards, which make us can barely wait for the performance(s) to come 😝😤😊😄💃

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(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArkvX4tcjSw)

Bringing down the temperature rise from 3.5 C - as forecasted based on the current pledges of 185 countries now - to 1.5 C requires us to be in the same ecstatic level of involvement, of ownership.

This is OUR problem, and WE have to deliver the solution!

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Climate Talks, and why we should care

What is COP21?

The COP or Conference of the Parties is the annual agenda of United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which was born as the result of Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Currently consisted of 196 country members, the convention functions to initiate and promote global actions aimed at maintaining the greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will avoid dangerous human interference with the climate system. The annual COP is established as the platform where the Convention’s targets and implementation are reviewed. Issues such as the tangible actions and the role of developed and developing countries are the main topics being addressed in these summits.

 Why do we need international agreement on climate change?

The scientists have studied and concluded that with temperature rise of 2 C more than the pre-industrial level, the changes on earth and nature will be catastrophic and irreversible. The impacts are in different forms in different parts of the world, including prolonged drought, wildfires in forest and dry areas, water shortage, sea level rise by nearly a meter by 2100, heavy precipitations and flooding. Even to date, these disasters already forged heated tension between countries to compete between resources and land occupation. Therefore the urgency and importance of global tangible actions to combat climate change is beyond question.

In order to limit the temperature rise within 2 C threshold, we are introduced to a system called carbon budget that defines the amount of CO2 that we can still emit. The international scientific community estimates this budget to be already spent by 52% in 2011. If the current emission rate remains unabated, we ‘only’ have 30 years until 2045 before the carbon budget is used up and the associated negative impacts with global temperature rise are exacerbated. When other GHG than CO2 are taken into account, the carbon budget we have spent is even larger than 50% which results to less than two decades time span before we reach 2 C temperature rise.

photo credit

So, where we are now with the global climate change treaty?

The first and only legally binding international climate treaty, Kyoto Protocol, was set up on COP3 in 1997. The agreement envisions a worldwide cuts in emission by 5% compared with the 1990 levels by 2012, by allocating specific emission target on developed countries. On the other side, developing countries including China, South Korea, Mexico, and other nations with emerging economy were not given any specific target and were allowed to increase their emission. Unfortunately, the then US congressional system halted the ratification of the Kyoto targets. With the exclusion of US participation as the then world’s biggest emitter, the requirement of at least 55% countries representing the global emission for Kyoto Protocol to come into force was not met. Finally in 2004, Russia decided to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, which made up the weight needed for the treaty to be legally binding. However by the course of time, none of the countries that was not succeed to meet the emission target under Kyoto Protocol was sanctioned.

The following act was COP15 in Copenhagen, which is considered fail to produce a fully articulated and legally binding treaty to limit the global temperature rise within 20C. Nevertheless, the world’s developed and developing countries were united for the first time towards a single goal to limit their greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, a big faith is put on the COP21 in Paris to be able to establish a legally binding commitment from all participating countries, which made up 98% of the global emission.

 What is different with COP21?

Recognizing the institutional barriers of the Kyoto Protocol framework, the COP21 establishes the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) system in which the member countries outlined their post 2020 action plans and targets to reduce the GHG emissions. With allowing each country to set up its own target based on national conditions and capabilities, more optimistic global commitment and participation are expected. The world’s today giant emitters – US, China, India, Russia, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia and EU – showed their commitment by submitting their INDC. The developed countries mostly outlined their emission reduction as relative to certain year level, while developing countries mostly define the reduction target based on the business as usual trajectory. The US will cut its emission by 25-28% in 2025 compared with the 2005 levels, the EU commit to reduce their emission by 40% compared with 1990 levels by 2030, China agrees that their emission will peak by 2030, Indonesia promises to cut carbon emission by 29% compared with the business as usual level by 2030 with a conditional 41% target given international climate finances are provided.

Various NGO’s and think tanks have analyzed the global implications of these INDC’s: they estimated temperature rise between 2.70C to 3.50C, vary due to different assumptions taken. This indicates the current INDC’s proposed by UNFCC member countries are still insufficient to address the climate change. Therefore the upcoming COP summits should be able to bring about more stringent emission reduction targets beyond 2030. Furthermore, it is indisputable for the COP21 to result on a legally binding agreement to ensure the countries are fulfilling their INDC towards the right direction for climate change abatement.

 What can we do to participate?

The climate change agreement in Paris would merely result in significant impacts, if there were lack of support and integration between the government, private industries, and of course us as the citizen. The citizen participation in incremental level could lead to significant augmented results: if we would reduce using personal vehicle and using public transport or bicycle in daily basis, opt for locally produced goods and services to reduce the long logistic supply chain, use less plastic products, etc. Beyond these individual contributions, we could also urge and support the government program on implementing sustainable power production, sustainable way of living, smart cities, etc.

Furthermore in Indonesia case, more than 50% of our annual CO2 emission comes from deforestation and land-use change. Looking back several months on the severity of forest fire in Sumatra and Kalimantan that were triggered by the expansion of palm trees plantation, we should already comprehend the scale of climate change impacts on Indonesian environment. Therefore we could also take action by helping the palm tree farmer to acquire better farming skills, use better quality seeds and cultivation methods, as well as supporting the government on taking the necessary actions to eliminate forest firing.

Whatever role you hold: as students, young professionals, teachers, engineers, researchers, entrepreneurs, politicians, and members of the community; make sure you make your contribution! Start small, and start now :)

PS: Check out the following links to get inspired on how to take part on the climate change combat!

· Rumah Energi

· POME-based power plant in Riau

· Tri Mumpuni, the micro hydro goddess  

· Waste-based power production

· Indonesia Plastig Bag Diet Movement    

· Crowd funding site for sustainability projects