One of the crucial problems facing the world today is environmental problems. In 2021, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued a report stating that in the next 20 years, extreme weather and climate change will increasingly be uncontrollable. This worrying thing is certainly not without a solution, if there is a joint effort from all parties to implement activities to control the damage.
One of the real problems regarding environmental issues in Indonesia is the problem of deforestation. According to data released by katadata in 2020, Indonesia has lost 270 thousand hectares of primary forest. This is also exacerbated by forest fires which are always a problem in several regions in Indonesia, such as in Sumatra & Kalimantan which have a negative impact on people’s health. This forest fire problem not only impacts local communities, but neighboring countries, such as Singapore and Malaysia.
One of the keys to overcoming this problem is collaboration from multiple parties who play a role in the macro, meso and micro areas. One of them is social entrepreneurs whose mission is environmental sustainability. PLUS is committed to encouraging business sustainability that applies the principles of sustainability and environmental improvement. Therefore, with the initiation of the Kalimantan Forest (KalFor) Project – GEF UNDP & the Directorate General of Forestry Planning & Environmental Management (PKTL) of the Indonesian Ministry of Environment & Forestry, PLUS has the opportunity to contribute through organizing KalFor Youth Innovation (KYI).
The KYI program aims to actively involve young Indonesians to contribute to solving environmental problems, through product innovation and business models. This program accommodates 20 teams who already have businesses on a start-up scale or at the ideation stage to be able to develop business plans by prioritizing environmental sustainability.
Strengthening the Capacity of the 20 Best Teams
The twenty (20) best teams selected from the 376 registrant teams came from various regions in Indonesia. Mentoring activities were carried out for 4 months, where in the first 2 months, 20 participants received workshop sessions and mentoring from the PLUS team. Furthermore, in the last 2 months, the 5 best participants received mentoring sessions from PLUS and business actors and the government facilitated by the KalFor Project & KLHK.
PLUS prepared workshop sessions with topics regarding introduction to entrepreneurship, business planning, problem mapping through design thinking concepts, preparation of sustainable business models and presentation skills. These four topics were prepared by PLUS to provide basic skills for 20 participants to run a business sustainably.
After getting workshop and consultation opportunities, 20 teams were tested through a pitching session featuring experts in the environmental and business sectors. This activity was carried out to find the 5 best businesses that were ready in terms of planning and product prototypes that had the potential to be developed into products for consumers.
The five best teams selected have a variety of business ideas from the food sector, carbon management, alternative fuels, waste management to clean water. Apart from getting the opportunity to access networking with policy makers at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, the five best teams also received business development assistance funds amounting to 25 million rupiah and became speakers at COP26 activities held in Jakarta in October 2021.
Participant Appreciation and Long Term Expectations
The implementation of this collaborative program received appreciation from participants while strengthening PLUS’ experience in implementing multi-stakeholder programs. From the feedback data collected, participants said that this program was 100% helpful in opening up collaboration opportunities.
Participants expressed their appreciation to PLUS for organizing this program. One of the participants’ responses was that this activity had the impact of providing networking and collaboration with related partners. Apart from that, tools for planning business models also help participants to prepare budgets, determine targets and timelines and manage teams.
The KYI program is expected to be a catalyst for the involvement of young people in alleviating environmental problems, as well as equalizing prosperity in Indonesia. The hope is that the knowledge provided can be implemented so that the role of the participants in the sustainable business sector can have an impact on reducing environmental problems.