CTC facilitated a half-day meeting and dialogue between the delegation of German government and some representatives of Indonesian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) last month to discuss the energy transition, plastic waste, climate change and biodiversity loss. The German Ambassador to Indonesia, ASEAN and Timor-Leste, Ambassador Ina Lepel, attended this interesting forum which was part of the G20 Foreign Minister Meeting in Bali.

Attended by approximately 50 participants, this meeting took place at the CTC’s Center for Marine Conservation on July 8, 2022. The event was also attended by the State Secretary and Special Envoy for Climate Change H. E. Jennifer Morgan via Zoom.

The community dialogue began with the theme of energy transition in Indonesia. Ms. Adityani Putri from the Centre for Energy Research Asia (CERAH) began by discussing the lack of will from the Indonesian government to transition from coal and fossil energy sources. Her talk was followed by the Executive Director of Germanwatch, Mr. Christopher Bals who extended the focus to share lessons learned during Germany’s transition to renewable energy.

Ms. Malati Wijsen from the Bye Bye Plastics Bags continued by stressing the importance of involving young people or the Gen-Z in creating positive change for future generations. The Executive Director of Environmental Action, Germany, Mr. Sacha Muller-Kranner, then talked on the challenges of addressing biodiversity loss, followed by the Vice President of RARE Indonesia, Mr. Taufik Alimi, who shared his concerns on the importance of supporting sustainable fisheries. These are particularly threatened by climate change.

The dialogue provided an opportunity for CTC to strengthen professional networks with stakeholders at regional and international levels, especially among G20 leaders and activists, to promote advocacy for coastal and marine ecosystems, sustainable fisheries, biodiversity protection, and climate change. “It has brought a good opportunity for CTC to strengthen connection with the German delegation and set up learning networks within the themes discussed during the dialogue,” stated CTC’s Conservation Science Coordinator Dominic Bryant.

Since Indonesia led the 2022’s G20 Presidency in 2021, CTC has actively contributed to supporting the success of several agendas, including participation in the Civil 20 (C20) Environment, Climate Justice and Energy Transition Working Group (ECE WG). Recently, the CTC assisted the working group in the preparation of a policy brief to integrate and prioritize marine conservation issues into the official communiqué for G20 leaders. 

Photos by Yoga Putra/CTC