Indonesia: Serangan a ‘living lab’ for development

Desy Nurhayati, Bali Daily, 8 Oct 13;

Serangan village has been chosen as the hub for the newly launched Southeast Asia Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN), a global initiative by the United Nations.

The network found a natural home in Bali — where the Hindu philosophy of Tri Hita Karana, or three ways to happiness, encourages people to live their lives in a way that finds balance and harmony for people with each other, with nature and with creation.

This philosophy was adopted by the SDSN as a basic consideration for a sustainable development framework and a guide for developing the ideal blueprint to rethink economic growth, advance social equity and ensure environmental protection.

The SDSN Indonesia and Southeast Asia Regional Hub were launched on Sunday by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during the inaugural Tri Hita Karana International Conference on Sustainable Development in Nusa Dua as a side event to the APEC Summit.

The implementation of this program is the establishment of the world’s first, fully integrated United in Diversity Creative Campus in Serangan.

This bold enterprise, an initiative envisioned with Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu and realized through the United in Diversity (UID) Foundation, will use Kura-Kura Bali (a project by PT Bali Turtle Island Development in Serangan) as a living laboratory to create solutions for sustainable development and support creative community.

“The Creative Campus will offer a platform for its partners and others to re-imagine how to learn in the 21st century, combining in-person teaching with digital learning, practical work experience and experimental studios. Programs will be available for students at any stage of their career, offering an opportunity to engage in lifelong learning and develop new skills,” said I Gede Ardika from the UID board of trustees, who is also a former culture and tourism minister.

The founding partners for the Creative Campus initiative include Microsoft, WPP – a world leader in media and advertising, and Mitra Adiperkasa- Indonesia’s leading retail marketing company. The campus is also working with MIT Sloan School of Management, Tsinghua University, University of Indonesia and Surya University.

As the home for the SDSN Southeast Asia regional hub, the Creative Campus will collaborate with the University of Indonesia Research Center on Climate Change, and Conservation International.

The first footprint of the campus is the ecologically sustainable area called Three Mountains, or Tiga Gunung. The area will host various activities over the coming months.

This initiative will be developed more completely over the next year, including design of the campus and the curriculum.

Located in the Southeast of Bali, between Nusa Dua and Sanur, Serangan village is home to more than 3,800 villagers. This small community is attempting to bring back the charm of the traditional Balinese village culture that is now lost in parts of Bali.

With a community of Hindu, Muslim and Chinese families, people have been living in harmony in six banjar (customary hamlets) for generations. There are eight Hindu temples, one mosque and one Chinese temple together on the one island, where harmony in diversity works.

Conducted by the Serangan villagers together with the UID, ongoing community development programs include bank sampah (garbage bank), bang uang (referring to the bangkuang, a local turnip) and bank sapi (cow bank).

“Together with UID, we identify the problems shared by the local community and lay out long-term plans to provide sustainable solutions for the island and its inhabitants,” said I Wayan Patut, a Serangan resident who was awarded the prestigious Kalpataru for his efforts in conserving the environment.

The bank sampah, or waste management program, is an initiative aimed at creating a new sustainable source of income for local people through their efforts in keeping the village clean. Under this project, they sort the garbage, with organic waste turned into fertilizer and inorganic waste recycled to create handicraft products.

The bang uang is a program dedicated to reviving a specific variant of bangkuang, a local turnip, that once thrived in Serangan’s soil. It is a crunchy, refreshing, edible tuberous root, also known to have skin-whitening effects.

The bank sapi is a program rooted in the local agricultural practices. The high cow population in Serangan provides a source of organic fertilizer for the bangkuang plantation, thereby creating a closed-loop sustainable approach.