The City Administration of Tangerang has long realised that climate change is a critical issue that can massively affect the city and its citizens. The global warming as a result of the trapped Green House Gas (GHG) emissions in the atmosphere has resulted in the increase of the global temperature. In Tangerang, the impact of the global warming is tangible in the forms of extreme weather, change of the rain patterns and increase of the temperature and sea level.
The Government of Indonesia has initiated the Climate-Friendly Village (‘Kampung Proklim’) programme, a community-based climate change mitigation and adaptation action. The programme aims to increase the awareness and understanding on the climate change and its impact so that in turn all levels of community will be encouraged to act responding to the climate change and contribute to the efforts in reducing GHG emissions.
Tangerang, having been aware on the climate change issue, responded with a massive action to establish 50 climate-friendly villages in the city’s annual development plan of 2019. The Mayor of Tangerang, Arief R. Wismansyah led the initiative managed by the city’s Environmental Agency.
The establishment of Kampung Proklim aims to strengthen the community in responding to the climate change and its impacts, clearly measure the potential and contribution of the city’s GHG reduction, generate climate actions at the local level that can contribute to decision, strategy and program making in regards to the climate change.
The activities of the Kampung Proklim in Tangerang include the Oxygen Donation (tree planting), Water Donation (establishment of biopore infiltration holes) and Waste Donation (reduce, reuse, recycle).
The Kampung Proklims in Tangerang are applying the approach defined by their Mayor, Arief Wismansyah, that every Kampung Proklim has to follow these principles: Clean – Green – 3R – Waste Reduction – Economic Value. Therefore, the Kampung Iklims in Tangerang can contribute up to 0.2% of the city’s GHG reduction and gain economic value from the sales of recycled waste such as compost and plastic waste as well as fruits such as mangoes, jackfruits and durians. They also grow plants for herbal medicine for personal use.
In the beginning of the programme, the Environmental Agency of Tangerang invited the leaders of the targeted communities for a programme introduction, most of whom welcomed the initiative and were eager to start immediately. The main message conveyed was communities were responsible to keep their environment sustainable. “For those who are still reluctant, we kept approaching them and introduced them to the leaders whose community have already established the Kampung Proklim and gained its benefits,” said Muhammad Thakhir, Head of Environmental Management and Capacity Building, Tangerang City Administration. “We brought the community leaders to the leading Kampung Proklims in Tangerang and Jakarta to spark their motivations.”
Awaluddin, a Kampung Proklim facilitator, has observed that women take the lead in Kampung Proklims activities. “Women are easier in welcoming our initiatives than the men. Maybe it is because they have more moral obligations than men in keeping the environment sustainable to their children,” he said. “From plastic waste to doll” is one of the initiatives that he has been introducing to the women of different Kampung Proklims and received warm welcome. Awaluddin has been training the housewives in Kampung Proklims on how to use plastic waste to make dolls for sale. He also trains other skills to Kampong Proklim activists including how to make compost and how to make handicraft from waste. “In making the environment sustainable, it is important that we, as a community member, understand our role and contribution and start acting locally,” said Awaluddin.
At the moment, 30 out of 50 Kampong Iklims in Tangerang City have been certified by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry Indonesia, nine of whom are going to the provincial Kampung Proklim competition this year. The Environment Agency of Tangerang has also set an ambitious target to add another 75 Kampung Proklims across the city, making Tangerang a city with 125 Kampung Proklims by the end of 2020.
