Enviro News Asia, Banda Aceh – The spirit of collaboration built through the Forest Youthverse program has continued to live on through the concrete actions of its alumni. Initiated by Mudassir, a 2025 Forest Youthverse Sumatra Regional alumnus, members of the Forest Conservation Generation (Genries) from various regions joined forces to organize FOLU Goes to School: Zero Waste Action Toward Adiwiyata Schools on July 10–11, 2026 in Banda Aceh.
The event, themed “Realizing Environmentally Conscious Schools through Zero Waste Real Action to Support Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink 2030,” was held at the Lading Hotel Banda Aceh on the first day and at the KamiKita Community Center on the second, and was attended by primary school teachers from various schools across the city. The program aimed to strengthen the implementation of the Adiwiyata School Program, build a zero waste culture, and encourage the development of environment-themed co-curricular activities in schools.
The initiative demonstrates that networks built through Forest Youthverse continue to grow after the program ends. Drawing on the experience and collaborative spirit gained during Forest Youthverse, Mudassir initiated FOLU Goes to School and invited fellow Genries to join as committee members and facilitators, drawing responses from alumni across regions, including Antoni, a 2025 Forest Youthverse Java Regional alumnus, who joined alongside Khaidir and Nabil. This cross-regional collaboration shows that Forest Youthverse has successfully built a youth network capable of transcending regional boundaries to move together in a single mission of protecting forests and the environment.
Banda Aceh City Education and Culture Agency Head Sulaiman Bakri, who opened the event, expressed appreciation for the collaboration in strengthening environmental education in schools.
“With or without the Adiwiyata designation, what matters most is that schools are safe and comfortable. The school environment must be well managed so that all school members feel comfortable. We hope all schools in Banda Aceh will become comfortable schools and ultimately achieve Adiwiyata status,” he said.
Committee Chairman Mudassir said the event was born from a desire to create real impact in home communities after participating in Forest Youthverse. “Forest Youthverse gave us a space to learn, build networks, and collaborate. That experience pushed us to keep moving after the program ended. Through FOLU Goes to School, we want to invite more schools to build an environmental care culture while proving that young people can be agents of change in their own regions,” he said.
Over two days, participants received material on Adiwiyata Program implementation, school environmental management, and zero waste concepts in learning. Facilitators encouraged schools to build eco-friendly cultures through waste sorting habits, reducing single-use plastics, school greening, and the reuse of still-usable items.
As a commitment to school greening, the committee symbolically handed over rambutan tree seedlings to school representatives, presented by the Head of the Banda Aceh Education and Culture Agency alongside the Head of SD Negeri 6 Banda Aceh and the Committee Chairman. Each participant also received an environment-themed co-curricular teaching module as a guide for implementing action-based learning to strengthen the Adiwiyata Program while supporting Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink 2030 target.
Through the emergence of initiatives like this, Forest Youthverse reaffirms its role as a platform for youth leadership development that generates lasting impact, with success measured not only by the number of participants but by the growing number of real actions, expanding collaborations, and Genries’ contributions to forest conservation and the achievement of Indonesia’s FOLU Net Sink 2030. (*)
