Environment Minister: Balinese local wisdom a model for environmental conservation
The Minister of Environment/Head of the Environmental Management Agency, Mohammad Jumhur Hidayat, stated that Bali’s local wisdom could serve as an example for maintaining environmental sustainability, as demonstrated by the Tukad Bindu initiative in Denpasar, Bali.
Minister Jumhur Hidayat made these remarks while planting rare trees, including sandalwood, agarwood, and nutmeg, and engaging in dialogue with environmentalist communities in the Tukad Bindu area, Kesiman Village, Denpasar, on Tuesday.
Jumhur Hidayat noted that Indonesia possesses invaluable local wisdom for environmental preservation, and the efforts of Tukad Bindu in Denpasar are one such example worthy of appreciation.
“Models like this demonstrate that environmental preservation does not only depend on government policy, but also on the active participation of the community,” said Jumhur Hidayat.
According to the Minister, the success of Tukad Bindu proves that effective river management can be achieved through collaboration between the government, communities, and local residents.
“I express my high appreciation to the Tukad Bindu Team, which has successfully built community participation through a local wisdom approach to environmental management, particularly river management. These efforts not only preserve the ecological functions of the river but also strengthen the social, cultural, and economic values of the surrounding community,” he said.
Jumhur added that the best practices developed in Tukad Bindu are worthy of being an inspiration for other regions in Indonesia, so that the methods used in Tukad Bindu can be adopted and replicated by various areas as an example of community-based and local wisdom-based river management.
“The government encourages the emergence of more similar initiatives so that environmental management in Indonesia becomes increasingly strong, inclusive, and sustainable for future generations,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the Mayor of Denpasar, I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara, expressed that the presence of the Environment Minister is both an honour and a motivation for the Denpasar City Government and all stakeholders to continue strengthening environmental preservation efforts.
“The presence of the Minister of Environment is a form of attention and support from the central government towards the various environmental preservation efforts we have been conducting alongside the community,” he said.
Jaya Negara emphasised that collaboration and synergy between the central government, local government, communities, and the public must continue to be optimised to maintain ecological sustainability and environmental preservation.
“We greatly appreciate that the Minister was willing to receive proposals, suggestions, and input from environmentalist communities in Denpasar City. This will certainly serve as material for evaluation and improvement for us in enhancing environmental management in the future,” he said.
The Mayor of Denpasar remains optimistic that with strong synergy, various environmental preservation programmes can run more effectively and provide sustainable benefits for the community.