Paving a Path for Balinese Youth towards Green Economy

Green economic recovery has generated a significant amount of discussion lately. It is deemed as one of the critical answers to the pandemic situation that we are still facing now. As an agent of change, youth involvement is very fundamental to accelerating the transition to a green economy. It is essential to build a strategy to transform to a green economy that is not only 'green' but also inclusive - where people are empowered to be resilient and creative to survive.

This is particularly relevant for Bali, as prior to the pandemic, Bali relies heavily on the tourism business. More than 50% of Bali's economy is sourced from the tourism industry. However, due to the pandemic, Bali's economy rapidly decreased. The number of unemployment is increasing. Many students who recently graduated are faced with very limited job opportunities. This has caused a huge amount of graduates who are unemployed. The status of being the province with the lowest unemployment in Indonesia no longer belongs to Bali. Even those who still have jobs were reported to experience a salary reduction of up to 40%.

Nonetheless, the collapse of Bali's tourism actually has a silver lining. It has halted the massive development of tourism industry practices that were far from sustainable and had caused numerous environmental and social issues. It encouraged us to re-think our tourism industry and re-strategize to pursue a sustainable one. For this reason, we believe that it is important to empower Balinese youth to think creatively to design viable and sustainable solutions that can save Bali's economy.

Other than having natural beauty that attracts foreigners, Bali is blessed with abundant natural resources, agriculture, and arts that have not been deeply explored nor developed before. We see that industrial diversification can be a great alternative in addition to promoting sustainable tourism. Therefore, Pratisara Bumi Foundation came up with an idea to design the INKURI program that will equip Balinese youth with green economic knowledge, skills, and tools to help them rebuild the local economy sustainably. Our INKURI program particularly focuses on 3 industrial sectors: agro-food, craft, and ecotourism.

INKURI participants during the seventh module activities (22/1)

We hope that INKURI can open new opportunities and possibilities for youth to innovate and give them a sufficient learning space for their green business experiment. We are sure that in the future, these youth leaders will be the driver of the Bali economy. Guided by the local wisdom and generational tradition, INKURI empowers youth to pursue the transition and implementation of green business that will positively impact the environment, the people, and also the economy.

We have just finished the second phase of the INKURI incubation activities and are now waiting for the participants while they are composing their sustainable business canvas. Stay tuned for phase 3!