Green Economy Development Requires Cross-Sector Collaboration, Not Just Academic Discourse

Amidst the rising threat of the climate crisis, environmental degradation, and global economic uncertainty, the concept of a green economy is increasingly becoming an urgent necessity rather than merely academic discourse. Indonesia is now at a critical juncture in determining its future development direction, where the choice remains between relying on old, exploitative economic patterns or beginning a transition towards a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient development model. This awareness prompted the Universitas Padjadjaran Alumni Association (IKA Unpad) to initiate the Green Economy Forum (FEH), a cross-sector collaborative platform to strengthen dialogue, ideas, and synergy towards sustainable development in Indonesia. The forum will be launched on 17 June 2026 in Jakarta, featuring a number of national figures, academics, policymakers, industry players, and civil society communities, said the Chairman of the IKA Unpad Board of Trustees, Burhanuddin Abdullah, in a statement on Thursday, 11 June 2026. He assessed that Indonesia no longer has much time to delay the transformation towards a sustainable economy, arguing that the cost of maintaining the old development model today is already far more expensive than the cost of transitioning to a green economy. We must see the green economy not as a burden, but as a huge opportunity to create new economic growth and new jobs, while safeguarding the nation’s sustainability, he said. According to Burhanuddin, the transition to a green economy will also determine Indonesia’s competitiveness on a global level. The international community increasingly demands development and industrial practices that are lower in carbon, more energy-efficient, and more environmentally responsible. Going forward, countries that can adapt to the green economy will become the winners of the world economy. Indonesia has great capital for that, but cross-sector collaboration is needed so that this transformation does not proceed partially, he said. The General Secretary of the Central Board of IKA Unpad, Yhodhisman Soratha, added that the idea regarding the importance of cross-sector collaboration became the basis for the birth of the Green Economy Forum. He explained that this forum was initiated as a strategic space to bring together various perspectives in formulating the future of Indonesia’s development.