Village Program (PROKLIM) is a national initiative to promote community-based climate change action and is the flagship program of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry that began in 2016
The village of To’pao, in Rembon Subdistrict, Tana Toraja, South Sulawesi, won a major PROKLIM 2020 trophy. The village, which has been supported by the Motivator-GT Training Centre through the ‘Lighthouse Project’, is one of 24 recipients of a major PROKLIM Trophy. These 24 locations were chosen as the result of a formal selection process of 813 proposals submitted from locations all over Indonesia.
The PROKLIM trophy was awarded at the ‘2020 Climate Festival Main Event’ on Friday, October 23, 2020, which was mostly conducted virtually in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The head of To'pao village, together with representatives of the Women Farmers Research Group, as proposers of PROKLIM To'pao, attended the online trophy ceremony which was held at the Motivator-GT meeting hall in Kondoran Sangalla’, due to limitations of the internet connection in To'pao.
Head of To'pao village, Imanuel Sambira, said, “We are very proud and moved by this Major PROKLIM Trophy award. We achieved all this thanks to excellent cooperation between the community and local government, in this case the District Environmental Agency in Tana Toraja, and in particular the assistance and guidance of the Motivator-GT Training Centre, which supported the Women Farmers Research Group in their commitment to carrying out climate change adaptation and mitigation actions”.
In agreement with the Head of Village, Tandu Ramba, Program Manager for the Motivator-GT Training Centre, said, “We are grateful that the adaptation and mitigation efforts made by the community in To'pao in responding to the ongoing negative impacts of climate change are appreciated by the Ministry of Environment. This is the third location that we have promoted via the National Registration System (SRN) to be designated as a PROKLIM location. Of the three proposed locations, two have been designated as Major PROKLIM recipients, Bua'tarrung in 2016 and To'pao in 2020 and one Minor PROKLIM location, Buntu Masakke, the neighbourhood surrounding Kondoran, in 2018. We will work hand in hand with the Environment Agency to continue to offer assistance in PROKLIM locations and also help other villages to enter the National Registration System for Climate Change Adaptation”.
"Lembang To'pao needs to maintain the achievements it has made so far and even increase activities related to climate change adaptation and mitigation including fostering other villages so that it can be proposed to receive the PROKLIM Conservation award in the future. This is not an easy task, but, with the support of the local government, I think this goal can be achieved”, said Ruth Tandi Ramba, Director of the Motivator-GT Training Centre.
