July 12 is celebrated as Indonesian Cooperative Day, coinciding with the history of the first Congress of the cooperative movement in Indonesia in 1947. In its journey, cooperatives today are not only providing services to help society improve the economy but also contributing to financing programs for climate change and energy transition. One example of good practice is financing for constructing biogas renewable energy installations. As we know, cow dung contains methane gas which impacts global warming. With biogas, methane gas in cow dung is captured and converted into raw materials for cooking. 

Starting from the experience of the Indonesia Domestic Biogas Program (BIRU Program), the Yayasan Rumah Energi (YRE) has since 2023 developed a Green Cooperative program that aims to encourage cooperatives to become agents of change in mitigating and adapting to climate change. YRE supported by ClimateWorks Foundation has carried out a series of discussion forums and workshop activities, as well as launched two books: 1) Climate Financing Policy Analysis for Cooperatives in Support of Climate Change Mitigation Programs; 2) Operational Guidelines for Cooperatives in Climate Change Mitigation Actions in Indonesia. The two books have been handed over to Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs of The Republic Indonesia. 

Apart from mitigation, the Green Cooperative program also highlights climate adaptation efforts. Through the Green Cooperative Adaptation Readiness (GENCAR) project, YRE with support of Lien Aid provides intensive training and assistance to four cooperatives in Central Java. This project also shares insights about climate change through a series of training held in a hybrid manner involving 24 cooperatives, 11 government agencies, 5 donor agencies, and 3 civil society organizations. 52 people were actively involved in the training series. 

On Indonesian Cooperative Day, YRE hopes that the Green Cooperative program can contribute more broadly and significantly to empowering cooperatives in efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. 

Written by: Fauzan Ramadhan 

Edited by: Fauzan Ramadhan