PORTALJABAR, GARUT REGENCY - The Cita Bina Bangsa Indonesia Foundation held a Nature Conservation Education event for high school students at Puncak Parabon, Garut Regency, Sunday (11/10/2024).

This event aims to raise environmental awareness among the younger generation, especially in Garut Regency.

Head of the Garut Regency Environmental Service, Jujun Juansyah, said that this activity was an initial step in forming a generation that cares about the environment.

"A healthy environment certainly has an impact on healthy world growth. Conservation is not only about planting trees, but also includes waste, energy, and culture or behavior towards the environment," he said.

Jujun hopes that this education will create environmental cadres who can educate the public about the importance of preserving nature.

He added that environmental problems cannot be solved at one time, so this activity is expected to continue sustainably.

Garut Regency has many challenges, including almost 51 thousand hectares of critical land that needs conservation, less than optimal waste management, and low public awareness of the environment.

"Hopefully, with this education, it will become a means to provide or replicate, especially public understanding of the environment," he said.

The Chief Executive also as the Head of the Citra Bina Bangsa Indonesia Foundation, Uun Frinawaty, stated that this activity is part of the launch of the Environmentally Concerned Students (Pepeling) program. As a pilot project, this program involves 5 leading schools, including SMAN 10 Leuwigoong and SMAN 16 Cisurupan, with a total of 50 students participating.

The purpose of holding this activity, continued Uun, is to instill the value of love for the environment, provide an understanding of climate change, and build green leadership character among young people.

"Furthermore, we also provide skills to children on how to be aware of the environment, starting from learning how to sow seeds, getting involved in tree planting activities, sorting waste, processing waste," he said.

In this event, the Cita Bina Bangsa Indonesia Foundation collaborated with a number of speakers, including from the Garut Regency Environmental Service, the West Java Forestry Service Branch, as well as a team from the West Java PBNU and BNPB.

One of the additional activities introduced was the processing of waste into Ekoenzim, a multi-benefit liquid. Participants were also introduced to Argo Retum, a conservation area owned by BBWS Cimanuk Cisanggarung which is part of environmental conservation efforts in Garut.