Indonesia: two simple solutions to effectively fight climate change.

Indonesia can become a major global player in the fight against the climate crisis if it optimizes the work of protection and rehabilitation of forests. Indeed, the country is home to the largest rainforest in Asia.

Protection and rehabilitation strategies in forestry and land use are known as nature-based solutions to climate change. These practices have proven to be effective. In Indonesia, these strategies could reduce by 60% the carbon emissions of the entire country.

However, the Indonesian government still spends the bulk of its climate budget on energy and transport, accounting for $ 236.2 billion, or 95.51% of the total. It allocates less than 3% in the sector of forestry and land use.

Some researchers in ecology suggest that the government should allocate more budget to two solutions based on nature that could effectively mitigate climate impacts.

1. Promoting sustainable agriculture

As the second largest contributor to Indonesia's economy, agriculture remains the most pressing factor of tropical deforestation in the country. Have

From 2000 to 2009, agriculture was responsible for 66% of the country's deforestation. This indicates that the Indonesia's sustainable agricultural policy has not been well implemented.

The agricultural sector should focus on meeting the nation's demand with a strict and sustainable policy. Excessive agricultural expansion must stop.

To do this, we can learn from the Netherlands , the global pioneer of sustainable agriculture. They optimized hydroponic systems to produce more produce while using less water and soil. This farming system does not require conventional components such as synthetic chemical fertilizers and extensive irrigation.

The government should also focus on improving the digital literacy of farmers and investing in supporting infrastructure. Have

Digital agriculture could become a solution to improve the sustainability of agriculture.

2. Prot ger é é è cosyst my virgins and restore cosyst ed è my d e e d grad

Reforestation often works naturally - as human disturbances, such as fires and land use, are minimal.

However, forest restoration faces many challenges. Have

Indonesia still has a major illegal logging in natural forests. The country is the world's largest producer of illegal timber. This makes the restoration effort much slower than the rate of forest loss.

At the same time, the restoration of peatlands is still well below the target (45%). The fires also led to the failure of peatland restoration in some areas. Have

The government should reformulate its strategies so that the restoration and protection of forests can be carried out in an efficient and sustainable manner. Have

First, degraded land and cut forests should become priority restoration areas to improve habitat connectivity. A critical factor is the accuracy of ecosystem data.

Second, the government could improve community rehabilitation in offering incentives to targeted communities. Have

For example, in South Tapanuli , North Sumatra, the local community will be encouraged to restore the forest. They can also harvest sustainable forest products as a source of income. Have

A study in 2017 by researchers in ecology from the University of Queensland found that the management of Hutan Desa (village forest) managed to avoid global deforestation. The village forest is defined as the community management of the forest given by the government in order to protect it and thus improve the well-being of the village.

To protect the ecosystem as a whole, the government should strengthen the protection of key areas of biodiversity.

Indonesia is recognized as one of the 17 countries with a "mega biodiversity ". It has 493 key biodiversity areas (KBA ) covering 344,003 km². But only about 5.3% of them (26 KBA) are designated as protected areas (against human disturbance).

Start working with nature, now

There is no quick fix that could solve the climate crisis all at once. Have

Following the hierarchy of mitigation and conservation - a step by step framework established by a global team of scientists to guide the implementation of specific actions - it is possible to reverse climate trends.

For example , to stop the environmental damage caused by oil palm plantations, the first step of the government should be to end the new permits in old forests. Have

This policy should be followed by adhering to best practices in the cultivation and harvesting of palm oil, such as the limitation of heavy machinery in the extraction process, in order to avoid further damage. Have

The next step is to address the loss of biodiversity by replanting cleared areas of forest in palm oil sites. This can happen on planting roads. Have

And the last step is to compensate for the loss of forest by replanting degraded areas near the site. Have

Collaboration between government, local communities and businesses is essential to ensure sustainability.

However, time is running out and the job needs to be done quickly.