Riau Police Chief Encourages Students To Become Tunas Leaders Of Ecological Justice

Riau Police Chief Inspector General Herry Hery Heryawan

JAKARTA - Riau Police Chief Inspector General Herry Heryyawan supports the Grow Institute's move, chaired by Rocky Gerung, to hold the Green Leadership Academy in Pekanbaru.

This is because Riau has been the epicenter of national ecological challenges, ranging from deforestation, forest fires, river degradation, to urban waste problems.

This situation is considered not only to threaten the ecosystem, but also to social, economic and even public security stability.

"Riau Police are fully committed to supporting pro-environmental policies through a green policy approach. The presence of students from various regions is new energy for us, because you are the next generation who will bring Indonesia to a greener and more sustainable future," said Herry Heryyawan in his statement, Friday, September 19.

The Green Leadership Academy, which was held on Thursday, September 18, is not just a discussion forum, but a constructive channel to channel critical energy students to productive, civilized, and evidence-based channels.

Students are equipped with leadership skills, advocacy, public communication, and strategies to build a solution social movement.

"We want the critical energy of students to no longer be seen as a threat, but as an asset that can enrich democracy," he added.

The founder of the Plant Institute, Rocky Gerung, added that a philosophical perspective of true leadership is born from a never-aging mind.

According to Rocky, humans have a DNA-determined age limit, in contrast to nature that knows no boundaries of life. But thoughts never age, therefore this country must be led by thoughts.

The green leadership function is to present collaborations between future ideas, democratic regulations, and academic testing by activists.

"In that process, students have proven themselves as winners, so the bureaucracy has begun to open itself up to their needs," said Rocky.

He reminded that destroying today's environment is the same as breaking the expectations of the younger generation. Therefore, the Green Leadership Academy sees it as a space to grow a 'young thread' that cannot be stopped.

"History always sides with young people. They have the right to declare themselves future leaders," he said.

Rocky gave an ecological illustration of everything being connected. Amazon becomes green because it is fostered by the Sahara desert. Trees are vertical rivers, destroying them is the same as destroying life.

"Through the Green Academy, we have learned to develop green policy as an answer to the crisis, especially when 3.4 million hectares of forest have been damaged, with 1.7 million hectares of which are in Riau," said Rocky.