Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Institut Français Indonesia (IFI) in collaboration with the Faculty of Geography UGM held an International Seminar on Climate Change titled “Iklim Berubah, dan Kita? Perubahan di Tangan Kita” on September 18th, 2015 at the Clinic of Environment and Disaster Mitigation. This seminar is part of a series of the annual event “Féte de la Science 2015” lasting from September 18th to October 4th, 2015. This series of event includes an International Seminar in the Faculty of Geography UGM, Film&Opened Seminar and “Pasar Organikologi” at IFI Yogyakarta, and Interactive Expo in Taman Pintar Yogyakarta.
Dyah R. Hizbaron, one of the presenters from the Faculty of Geography UGM, provided the importance of spatial and temporal approach for further climate change comprehension. Climate change has been exacerbating both water scarcity and deforestation in most islands in Indonesia. During her presentation on “How Climate Change Our Livelihood: An Indonesian Case”, she also emphasized that climate change-induced sea level rise resulted in the recently devastating impact of inundated coastal cities in Java Island, i.e. Pekalongan, Demak, Semarang, and Jakarta, in the forms of social and economic losses in local people’s livelihoods and also ecological and economic losses in marine ecosystems.
Aside from marine ecosystem loss, climate change is also responsible for worsened deforestation in Indonesia, especially in Sumatra. “There has been a significant loss due to deforestation in the last 15 years. There are only a few remaining forests and peatlands in Indonesia. Everyone is of course responsible for this rapid change. The sources of this deforestation may come from illegal logging, coal mining, rubber and oil palm plantation estate, transmigration program, fire, climate change, and corruption, which are plausibly exacerbated by uncontrolled population growth,” explained Eric Penot, an agroeconomy professor from Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement (CIRAD) France.
Furthermore, ALSTOM Foundation presented their last June’s project on “Development of Clean Water Using Solar Water Pumping System for Remote Village in Gunung Kidul”, which was initiated by a university students’ program in Gunung Kidul. ALSTOM Foundation explained that this project has been significantly increasing the water supply up to 33 m3/day.
In this seminar, IFI also introduced the academic world as well as the procedure to apply as bachelor, master, and doctorate students in France, which can be accessed from www.indonesie.campusfrance.org.