MARCH 10, 2025
Project FLARE is a strategic intervention to fundamentally reshape Indonesia’s economic structure by 2045, shifting away from extraction-based industries toward a more sustainable model centered on responsible bioeconomy in one of the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitters.
Launched by Gita Syahrani (Awardee 2023) through the Climate Breakthrough Award program, Project FLARE (Fostering Linkages in Actionable Reform of Economy) represents an ambitious effort to protect critical ecosystems while creating viable economic alternatives for communities dependent on industries that contribute to deforestation and environmental degradation.
The Challenge
Between 2016 and 2022, the country lost more than two million hectares of forest, with over 60% of recent deforestation occurring in permitted concession areas. The global demand for palm oil is projected to grow by 3% annually, potentially expanding plantations by 30-40% by 2045 and degrading over 20 million hectares of crucial ecosystems through monoculture practices. Meanwhile, Indonesia’s mining sector has nearly doubled its GDP contribution, driven by downstream industry growth.
Without intervention, extractive industries could account for 13-15% of GDP by 2045, further accelerating ecological deterioration. The central question Project FLARE addresses is straightforward but profound: can Indonesia offer concrete economic alternatives to extractive industries and large-scale monoculture, particularly at the subnational level where environmental pressures are most acute?
The Initiative
Project FLARE focuses on developing responsible bioeconomy as an alternative economic model, specifically targeting high-risk critical ecosystem areas most vulnerable to exploitation across 29 provinces. This approach leverages Indonesia’s rich biodiversity to produce food, energy, and industrial goods while prioritizing sustainability and ecosystem health.
The strategy involves working through multiple systems simultaneously. First, engaging key ministries at the national level and critical agencies at the subnational level to create supportive policies. Second, developing business archetypes including sustainable producers, value-added processors, market aggregators, export-focused innovators, and technology-driven enablers. Third, mobilizing impact investments, blended finance platforms, and green financing from domestic and international sources. Fourth, leveraging media outlets, artists, and cultural leaders to build awareness and support.
The Vision
Through this comprehensive approach, Project FLARE is not just an environmental conservation effort, but a strategic economic transformation designed to position Indonesia for sustainable growth in the decades ahead.
The initiative targets the protection and restoration of more than 30 million hectares of forests and peatlands. It envisions a cumulative reduction target of 25.51 gigatons of CO2 equivalent between 2028 and 2045. Perhaps most significantly, if successful, Project FLARE aims to reduce the GDP share of extractive industries to less than 7-10% by diversifying the non-extractive sector.