Jakarta (ANTARA) - Head of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Arif Satria, explained the important role of botanical gardens in preserving Indonesia's biodiversity.
In a statement in Jakarta on Sunday, Satria highlighted four key roles of botanical gardens -- supporting education and research, preserving genetic diversity, serving as educational tourism sites, and contributing to public welfare -- all essential to tackling Indonesia's biodiversity loss.
"We must continue to strengthen this perspective, but we must have the courage to initiate future practices. Future practices mean starting new things because their strength lies in creativity and imagination," he said.
Therefore, Satria emphasized the importance of botanical garden management in making breakthroughs to ensure the proper functioning of botanical gardens, such as in education and research.
Furthermore, he continued, botanical gardens must strengthen their position as collection centers connected to other surrounding facilities as sources of genetic diversity.
He said botanical gardens also provide tourism benefits by offering environmental services like beauty, oxygen, and carbon absorption -- acting as the lungs of cities and regions. He added that cultural value within the gardens can also drive prosperity and economic activity.
Satria emphasized that botanical gardens should not stop at preservation efforts; they must become drivers of the utilization of Indonesia's plant resources and strengthen conservation networks to support sustainable development.
He noted that another challenge is expanding efforts beyond internal management to foster community-run botanical gardens, and said BRIN could later introduce pilot initiatives to establish smaller botanical garden models.
Therefore, Satria hopes that all botanical gardens in Indonesia will continue to make positive contributions to environmental sustainability and prevent the potential harms of climate change.
Furthermore, BRIN's Deputy for Research and Innovation Utilization, R. Hendrian, emphasized the importance of botanical gardens as part of the national research ecosystem.
Botanical garden development must be linked to the Sustainable Development Agenda and be able to utilize research results to address various challenges at the regional and national levels.
Hendrian said botanical gardens and plant conservation should be seen beyond simple preservation. They must link to broader, real-world issues to strengthen their relevance and enhance their contribution.
