Financial investment is crucial in the global efforts to tackle climate change, as pronounced in the COP-26. It is also reflected in the Indonesian media for the past two months. In the December edition of Media Monitoring, climate finance remains the talk of the nation, along with the policy instruments to support such financing. We found that most climate-related news in the media revolves around these four themes.

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Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities (CRIC) delivered Climate Action Plan (CAP) training to 267 local government representatives in nine Indonesian cities in 2021, serving as a significant milestone to help increase local government capacity in building urban climate resilience. The training also emphasised the need for the convergence of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction to achieve sustainable development.

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The planet has witnessed the paralysing impact of extreme weather on our lives throughout 2021. The Global Climate Report has documented the increase of climate-induced disasters from the Eastern to Southern hemisphere. At a national level, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) sounded the alarm of the extreme weather incidents that will take place until mid-December 2021. Improving early warning systems is one of the key strategies for Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities (CRIC) in the three pilot cities, Pangkalpinang, Bandar Lampung, and Ternate, to prepare cities and communities to anticipate imminent disasters.

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Population and economic growth pose another challenge for Samarinda City, which is waste that –if unmanaged- can lead to environmental degradation and greenhouse gas emissions. The City of Samarinda responds to this challenge through collaboration and innovation.

With a population of 872.000 and a population growth of 1,62% per year^[1], Samarinda produces at least 18,881 tonnes of waste^[2]  every month. To illustrate this, at least each person throws away 700 grams of waste every day. Of the total urban waste, 60% are organic waste from households, paper, and plastic.

Understanding the importance of household-level waste management efforts, the Local Government came up with Jeng Rinda, a programme to recycle used cooking oil. "Jeng Rinda is a demonstration of innovation and commitment our City takes to tackle the environmental pollution starting from the household level. We need to take this programme seriously because it has a multiplier effect on local communities. We can recycle used cooking oil into a product with economic values," said the Mayor of Samarinda a Dr H. Andi Harun, 29 September 2021.^[3]

Jeng Rinda is part of the Local Government's Development and Community Empowerment Programme by providing monetary incentives to every neighbourhood that will receive 100 to 300 million IDR each year for collecting used cooking oil. The local government will sell the oil to its private-sector partner that processes it into biodiesel. "I'm optimistic that the Jeng Rinda programme will increase community participation in tackling environmental problems, increase environmental quality and improve economies," said the Mayor.

Climate action in the waste sector

Innovating community-based waste management efforts is imperative, especially when Samarinda faces more frequent floods due to climate change. The City experienced 44 floods incidents from 2011 to 2019; one of the contributors was solid waste blocking the drainage system.^[4]

The Second Assistant of Samarinda Regional Secretary Nina Endang Rahayu, M.Kes., said that the City has several community-based waste management initiatives, in addition to Jeng Rinda. Those initiatives are Bank Ramli (an environmental-friendly Waste Bank), Mitra Bersih Generasi Emas (waste to gold saving trade-in), Kampung Salai (added-value waste) and Waste-Free Ambassador. "We also collaborate with the Education Department to promote an Adiwiyata School ^[5] to build awareness of clean and healthy environment starting from schools," she said during the Human Rights Festival, 18 November 2021.

Samarinda aims to reduce landfill waste by promoting household waste management. The waste sector's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions has increased from 2014 to 2018, although it is not the major GHG contributor (the main contributors are transportation and energy sectors). The Mayor also signed a commitment to participate in the CRIC Project and prioritise tackling climate change through its waste sector.

In Samarinda, CRIC help increase local government capacities to develop Climate Action Plan by conducting Climate Action Plan training. The first training on the Greenhouse Gas Inventory from 25 to 26 August 2021 sought to introduce the mitigation concept and greenhouse gas calculation. The series of CAP training will take place until 2022 to help local governments develop efficient and effective climate-proof policies and actions.

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[1] Urban Analysis Report: Samarinda, Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities, 2020.

[2] Presentation of the Second Assistant of Samarinda Regional Secretary, drg. Nina Endang Rahayu, M.Kes., in Human Rights Festival, 18 November 2021.

[3] Ayo Kita Sukseskan! Program Jeng Rinda “Jelantah Membangun Samarinda”, Dinas Komunikasi dan Informatika Kota Samarinda, https://youtu.be/Ep6Qv_aMqCk, 29 September 2021.

[4] Urban Analysis Report: Samarinda, Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities, 2020.

[5] Adiwiyata School is a national government initiative conducted through the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. The programme implementation is regulated through the Minister Regulation Number 5/2013 on the Implementation Guidance of Adiwiyata Programme.

In Banjarmasin, the capital city of Indonesia’s South Kalimantan Province, floods and fires vulnerabilities may increase due to climate change. The Local Government is stepping up to tackle this issue by increasing the adaptive capacity of its most vulnerable groups: people with disabilities (PwD).

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As Prof. Youssef Diab (Université Gustave Eiffel) is piloting a civil engineering master course at the University of Liège, a webinar on "Urban Resilience" has been organized for about 15 specialized engineering students on the 9th of December 2021 at 1.45 pm (CET). It gathered 3 different speakers, with 3 different backgrounds and experiences.Pilot4DEV has presented the CRIC (Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities) project of which both the Université Gustave Eiffel and Pilot4DEV are partners.

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United Nations Climate Change Conference 2021, Conference of Parties (COP) 26, concluded in Glasgow, on 12 November 2021, with a strong call-to-action for countries to double their climate actions and for developed countries to mobilise finance to support developing countries to adapt to climate change.

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Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities (CRIC) Project took part in the Indonesia Human Rights Festival 2021 by sharing insights and actions in the "Collective Commitment Towards Social and Environmental Justice" session, Thursday (18/11). The webinar sent a strong message of the urgency to embed human rights considerations into the core of climate decision-making processes and practices. 

The alarming increase of global temperature to 1.1° Celsius above pre-industrial levels is a code-red for the earth and humankind. The impact of climate change will be felt differently for regions and community groups depending on their underlying climate risks and vulnerabilities. Echoing the Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley's address at the COP26, climate change is a 'death sentence' for island nations. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2021) has also warned that coastal areas will experience more frequent and severe coastal flooding due to rising sea levels. 

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Climate Resilient and Inclusive Cities (CRIC) Project will participate in the Human Rights Festival 2021 by featuring practices and actions from its European partners and pilot cities, from 17 to 18 November 2021.

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Climate change issues have taken centre stage in the Indonesian media outlets as the world is gearing up to start United Nations Climate Change Conference, Conference of Parties (COP) 26, in Glasgow, Scotland, from 31 October to 12 November 2021.  

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