Indonesia faces challenges related to waste and waste management, rapid urbanization growth, sustainable natural resource management, promoting inclusive economic growth, and contributing to global climate change mitigation.
Therefore, UGM encourages the development of a circular economy by accelerating its mainstreaming at the government, community, private sector, and public levels, emphasizing collaboration.
This was highlighted in a workshop titled “Mainstreaming Circular Economy for Transformative and Sustainable Change” held at the UGM Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol UGM) auditorium on Monday (May 6).
The workshop, organized by the UGM Institute of International Studies (IIS UGM) in collaboration with BAPPENAS through the Deputy for Maritime and Natural Resources, UN-PAGE/UNDP Indonesia, featured several speakers, including Dr. Wawan Mas’udi, a lecturer in Politics and Government, Dr. Luqman Nul Hakim, a researcher at IIS UGM, Novita Sari, Program Manager for Environment & Climate Change at the EU Delegation to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam, and Dr. Aretha Aprilia, Head of the Environment Unit at UNDP Country Office Indonesia.
Dr. Mas’udi stated that mainstreaming the circular economy is essential for addressing climate change adaptation through concrete steps on the ground.
Efforts to promote the concept of a circular economy can start at the level of government, community, private sector actors, and the public. Collaboration is key to developing a circular economy, and it can even begin on a small scale in the everyday lives of community members.
“Climate change adaptation steps cannot start from grand discourses. However, we must begin with the closest and most accessible steps,” said Dr. Mas’udi.
Dr. Aretha Aprilia emphasized the urgency of cross-sector collaboration in implementing the concept of a circular economy. According to her, implementing circular economy policies requires cooperation between actors and personal initiatives to encourage actions that can be taken in daily life.
“A space for dialogue is needed to encourage collaboration in implementing the circular economy in Indonesia,” Novita Sari added.
Suci Lestari Yuana, a lecturer in International Relations at Fisipol UGM, stated that the development of circular economy knowledge in Indonesia should be adjusted to the context of local wisdom. According to her, ideas from developed countries cannot resolve all social and environmental issues.
“It is possible to have new knowledge sourced from the local community’s needs,” she explained.
Author: Dita
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Image: Freepik