Kalangan Muda Dukung Penerapan Sawit Berkelanjutan

[:id]JAKARTA—Dalam upaya mendukung penerapan sawit berkelanjutan di Indonesia, Jaringan Indonesia Muda (JIM) bekerjasama dengan Badan Pengelola Dana Perkebunan Kelapa Sawit (BPDPKS) menyelenggarakan Lokakarya dan Meeting Gathering 2019. Kegiatan yang mengusung tema “Satukan Langkah Untuk Sawit Indonesia” ini dilangsungkan di Bogor, Jawa Barat, 20-22 November 2019. Kegiatan digelar untuk memberikan edukasi dan pengetahuan kepada kalangan muda tentang sawit Indonesia yang berkelanjutan. Arsyad Prayogi selaku ketua umum JIM dalam sambutannya mengungkapkan tentang kondisi dan tantangan yang dihadapi Industri minyak kelapa sawit. Menurutnya, kelapa sawit sering mendapatkan narasi negatif yang disampaikan melalui media. Misalnya, sawit dianggap sebagai salah satu pemicu kerusakan lingkungan di Indonesia. Padahal, narasi tersebut tidak selamanya benar karena penerapan sawit berkelanjutan menentang perusakan lingkungan semacam itu. “Maka dari itu, peran anak muda sangatlah penting dalam menjawab persoalan dan tantangan yang dihadapi industri kelapa sawit. Melalui media sosial kita bisa bergerak mengkampanyekan narasi positif tentang sawit berkelanjutan,” ujar Arsyad. Sementara itu, Kepala Divisi Perusahaan BPDPKS Achmad Maulizal Sutawijaya dalam sambutannya menyampaikan bahwa Indonesia tengah berupaya menerapkan sawit berkelanjutan di semua sektor sawit. Mulai dari aspek perkebunan, lingkungan, energi, perdagangan, dan lain-lain. “Upaya ini perlu didukung oleh semua lapisan masyarakat, tak hanya oleh pemangku kepentingan di sektor sawit. Penerapan sawit berkelanjutan harus pula dibarengi dengan upaya untuk meyakinkan publik, khususnya komunitas internasional, bahwa sawit Indonesia merupakan sawit yang ramah lingkungan,” tegas Maulizal. Menurutnya, peran kalangan muda di Indonesia dalam upaya sosialisasi sawit berkelanjutan sangatlah penting. Sebab, mereka merupakan generasi yang akan menjaga eksistensi sawit Indonesia di masa depan. “Wawasan kalangan muda mengenai sawit sudah semakin terbuka. Mereka sudah bisa membedakan mana informasi yang hoax, dan mana yang fakta. Fakta-fakta mengenai sawit berkelanjutan inilah yang juga perlu disebarkan lebih luas lagi,” tutur Maulizal. Arsyad dan Maulizal juga memaparkan mengenai sawit dan kontribusinya dalam kehidupan manusia secara umum serta terhadap perekonomian Indonesia. Sawit merupakan produk pertanian serbaguna yang bisa ditemukan dalam berbagai produk keseharian. Mulai dari makanan, kosmetik, bahan pembersih rumah tangga, produk perawatan tubuh, hingga bahan bakar untuk kendaraan. Kelapa sawit juga merupakan penghasil minyak nabati yang paling efisien karena mampu menghasilkan minyak dalam jumlah banyak dari sedikit lahan dibandingkan dengan tanaman minyak nabati lain seperti bunga matahari, kedelai, dan kedelai. *** [:en]BOGOR—Hundreds of Indonesian youth gathered in Bogor, West Java, 20-22 November 2019 for a “Youth for Indonesian Palm Oil”-themed program. The event, supported by the Indonesia Oil Palm Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDPKS), focused on reviewing and planning the contribution of young people for sustainable palm oil. The event was aimed to create awareness among young adults about the benefits of palm oil so they could help promote the commodity. Chairman of Jaringan Indonesia Muda (JIM) Arsyad Prayogi delivered the opening speech, reminding youth to step up in their communities and take responsibility towards creating a sustainable palm oil. He said, massive campaign against the use of palm oil is manufactured with an intent to mislead the public. It has derived from a misunderstanding among Europeans that the commodity damages the environment. “We believe that youth today have great power to offer. Our common values, ideas, and energy will be our drive to support sustainable palm oil. We are adept at social media and want to use it to share positive information on sustainable palm oil,” Arsyad said. Speaking at the same event, BPDPKS’ Corporate Secretary Achmad Maulizal Sutawijaya said that Indonesia is working to universally strengthen social development, environmental protection, and economic prosperity across the sustainable palm oil value chain. “Together with relevant stakeholders, we continuously intensify our efforts to promote sustainable palm oil. It is deemed necessary to spread information that Indonesian palm oil is sustainable,” Maulizal said. According to him, engaging with the youth has always been part of advocacy strategy, as they can grow an effective movement to increase the adoption of sustainable palm oil. They can share information on palm oil benefits with their peers. “Today, young people are more socially aware that palm oil is frequently portrayed negatively in the media. They are able to indicate which are hoaxes and which are not. They prefer to look at scientific evidence rather than base their opinion on hearsay. Arsyad dan Maulizal shared some interesting facts on palm oil. They informed participants that palm oil has contributed to economic benefits such as government revenues, profits for companies, employment, and raised incomes for smallholders. Palm oil in Indonesia has generated billions in foreign exchange and provided millions of jobs and opportunities for rural farmers. Palm oil plays a decisive role in the lives of almost people and can be found in foods, detergents, cosmetics, even in diesel fuel tanks. Apart from that, oil palms accounted for smaller number of land use for cultivation but produced more output. This makes palm oil the most efficient, and most demanded vegetable oil in the world compared to other vegetable oil such as rapeseed, soybean, and sunflower. *** [:]