One of the challenges facing Indonesia today is how to advance the economy of a region while maintaining environmental sustainability amid the threat of climate change. This moved the Universitas Indonesia Nature Lovers Students to contribute to advancing the region through the “Baka-Raya Project” which was held on August 7-28, 2022, in Bukit Baka and Bukit Raya National Park (TNBBBR), Sintang Regency, West Kalimantan.
“Baka-Raya Project” is a series of activities organized by the Special Board for Inauguration (BKP) Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students 2022 for prospective members Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students. This activity includes three things, namely a carbon-neutral hiking campaign; the opening of a new trail for climbing Mount Bukit Raya; and the initiation of the Pojok Literasi social project. TNBBBR was chosen as the destination because of the common spirit between Mapala UI and the Sintang District Government which initiated the Sintang Lestari Regional Action Plan (RAD), in order to realize a prosperous society through tourism. This is done by taking into account the sustainability of natural resources and environmental conditions.
Baka-Raya Project dispatched a joint team of prospective Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students members, Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students members, and Physical Service Army personnel to Rantau Malam Village, Sintang Regency. Their climbing principle is carbon-neutral climbing, which means calculating, replacing and reducing emissions.
Therefore, they had to calculate the carbon emissions generated during the trip using a hiking-specific carbon footprint calculator. Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students developed this technology based on the World Resources Institute (WRI), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and other references according to the needs of each parameter.
The technology is designed to calculate overall carbon emissions by parameterizing each variable, such as food, cooking fuel, and forest clearing. This hiking-specific carbon footprint calculator will be published as a website for hikers across Indonesia to use.
Once calculated, Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students will pay for the carbon emissions produced as a form of accountability for these emissions. They partnered with the Jejak.In application as a carbon offsetting service provider and chose to plant mangroves as a way to pay their carbon debt. Mangroves were chosen because they can absorb 4-5 times more carbon than other trees.
Through this climbing activity, it is hoped that it can revive post-pandemic tourism in Sintang Regency due to the opening of a new route. In opening a new hiking trail in Bukit Raya, the hiking team had to apply their land navigation skills that had previously been trained for 6 months.
The hike was conducted from Rantau Malam Village to the top of Mount Bukit Raya and back to Rantau Malam Village, with a total distance of 69 km. In the first 10 km from the departure point to the 2nd checkpoint, the hiking team follows the path that is already open. Then, 22 km later, the team opened a new path.
Puncak Kakam is the highest point in Kalimantan and one of the Seven Summits of Indonesia. The path passed by the climbing team is a dense forest that is still filled with endemic Borneo fauna, such as hornbills, and vegetation in the form of trees with a diameter of more than 2 meters.
During the nine-day hike, they only had one day of rain. In the tropical forests of Borneo, they are prone to animal attacks, such as leeches, pacet and even skin diseases such as athlete’s foot, but they anticipate this by wearing long-sleeved clothes made from quick dry materials.
In this project, Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students also initiated the Literacy Corner social project in Rantau Malam Village, Sintang Regency, as an effort to show concern for improving children’s literacy in the region. The project, in collaboration with PT Gramedia Asri Media and the National Library, was implemented by building a reading corner at SDN 20 Rantau Malam, which currently does not have a library.
This activity received support from several parties, such as the Sintang Regency Government, Kodam XII Tanjungpura, Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park, Army Military Physical Service, Fit@Fifty Climbing Group, PT Sha Solo, PT Gramedia Asri Media, National Library of RI, and colleagues from Mapala Tanjungpura University and Kompas Kapuas University Sintang.
“In addition to campaigning for carbon-neutral climbing to climbers, I hope this activity can enrich the natural tourism assets of Sintang Regency and be able to attract tourists to visit so that the economy of the area can be lifted,” said the Chairman of Universitas Indonesia Nature Lover Students, Magkma.
