"The lives of Indonesian people have relied on and become one with nature. We should not forget this, as Indonesia`s natural wealth is our significant identity," the head of state said.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) attended the Kalpataru environmental award presentation ceremony held at the Manggala Wanabakti forestry ministry complex, here, Wednesday.

The event was organized to commemorate National Environmental Day themed "Connecting People to Nature" this year.

"The lives of Indonesian people have relied on and become one with nature. We should not forget this, as Indonesias natural wealth is our significant identity," the head of state said.

During the ceremony, Environmental Affairs and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar and Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution presented awards to individuals, groups, regional heads, and schools that have contributed significantly to environmental preservation.

"Today, we also launch new stamps urging each person to plant at least 25 saplings during his or her lifetime," Minister Nurbaya emphasized.

Kalpataru environmental awards for individuals and groups were bestowed on 10 recipients, while the Adipura Kencana awards for cities and districts were given to six; Adipura for cities, to 16; Adiwiyata Mandiri awards for schools were given to 24; and Nirwasita Tantra awards for regional heads to nine comprising three governors, three district heads, and three mayors.

Kalpataru was first awarded in 1980, and there are already 357 recipients across Indonesia.

This years 10 recipients of Kalpataru are from North Sumatra, East Kalimantan, Jakarta, West Java, Bali, East Java, West Kalimantan, Papua, Yogyakarta, and North Kalimantan.

During the 2006-2016 period, a total of 7,278 schools had received the Adiwiyata awards. This year, similar awards were bestowed on 24 schools.

The 2017 Nirwasita Tantra awards were bestowed on the governors of East Java, West Sumatra, and Jakarta; district heads of Malang, Sukoharjo, and Dharmasraya; and mayors of Surabaya, Balikpapan, and Bukit Tinggi.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017