UNESCO Gives Green Card, Kaldera Toba Is Getting Stronger As A Global Destination

Illustration of Lake Toba's view in North Sumatra. (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - UNESCO officially established the Toba Earthquake Park (Geopark) in North Sumatra to regain its green card status. This predicate confirms that the Lake Toba area is maintained in quality as part of the UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGP) network.

Minister of Tourism Widiyanti Putri Wardhana welcomed this achievement. He expressed his appreciation to the local government, management agencies, and all tourism stakeholders who have followed up on UNESCO assessors' recommendations.

"Toba's hard work has made Lake Toba win a green card again," said Widiyanti in Jakarta, as quoted by ANTARA.

According to him, this success is the result of cross-party collaboration, including support from the Ministry of Tourism which actively facilitates and coordinates a number of programs. One of them is the implementation of The 1st International Conference: Geotourism Destination Toba Caldera UNESCO Global Geopark 2025.

The status of the green card was determined through the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council Session which took place in Chile on September 5, 2025. Apart from Kaldera Toba, two other geoparks from Indonesia also managed to maintain the same title, namely Geopark Rinjani Lombok (NTB) and Geopark Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu (West Java).

Widiyanti explained that every global geopark is required to undergo comprehensive revalidation every four years. The result could be in the form of a green card with an extension of the status for four years, or a yellow card that only applies for two years while waiting for improvement according to the Council's records. Of the 44 geoparks evaluated this year, 38 received green cards and 6 others yellow cards.

He added that this status is not only a form of international recognition, but also a great opportunity to encourage sustainable tourism. Kaldera Toba, according to him, reflects Indonesia's tourism vision that prioritizes balance between nature, culture and science.

As a follow-up, the results of a hearing in Chile attended by about 150 observers from 32 countries will be brought to the UNESCO Executive Council. The report is scheduled to receive official approval by mid-2026.