FGD Series 4: The Urgency of a Just Energy Transition to Prevent Natural Resource Degradation: The Perspective of Sustainable Financing
31 August 2023
Bogor, August 31, 2023 – The Directorate of Strategic Studies and Academic Reputation of IPB University, in collaboration with CFES and FWI, as well as practitioners from Civil Society Organizations, held the 4th Focus Group Discussion (FGD) with the theme “The Urgency of a Just Energy Transition to Prevent Natural Resource Degradation: A Sustainable Financing Perspective” at the Meeting Room of the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development Studies (PSP3), IPB Baranangsiang Campus. This 4th FGD series is a continuation of activities aimed at discussing and proposing a white paper “Natural Resource Governance for the New Government 2024.”
The activity, which was attended by various stakeholders, including academics, practitioners, and representatives of government bureaucracy, became an important collaborative space to understand how the implementation of energy transition in Indonesia can encourage good natural resource governance, accompanied by support through sustainable financing that can provide valuable impact to communities at the grassroots level and the environment.
In the previous series of FGDs, the first theme discussed the problems and tenurial conflicts occurring in the governance of natural resources in Indonesia. The second FGD theme discussed efforts to encourage the realization of equitable, sovereign, and sustainable utilization of natural resources. Meanwhile, the third FGD theme reflected on efforts to implement protection of natural resources and ecosystem restoration that have been carried out in Indonesia.
Prof. Ernan Rustiadi, Vice Rector for Research, Innovation and Agromaritime Development of IPB University, also stated that, “energy transition must move based on sustainable principles, not only in economic aspects but also in social and cultural aspects.” Therefore, in this 4th FGD, the theme of energy transition and sustainable financing is expected to be a solution to the problems causing natural resource degradation and to ensure justice in benefit distribution.
Some of the main points discussed in this session included the implementation and critical notes on energy transition in Indonesia, the importance of sustainable financing in improving natural resource governance, identifying enabling conditions for applying sustainable financing, including its challenges and opportunities, and discussing steps that can be taken to accelerate the adoption and growth of sustainable financing.
Arif Aliadi, Director of Community Forest Ecosystem Services (CFES), also conveyed that, “sustainable financial support for social forestry is provided with the hope of strengthening community capacity in forest management.” Therefore, the discussions and agreements reached in this FGD will serve as a foundation for further steps in achieving a just energy transition and sustainable financing to prevent increasingly intensive natural resource degradation.