Revitalising the Citarum River demands holistic solutions blending nature and community empowerment

Monash University, Indonesia, held a discussion and screening of the documentary film Living River: A Pathway to Revitalise the Citarum River. The insightful film shed light on the perspectives of various stakeholders involved in the Citarik Ecotourism Master Plan, emphasising the importance of community-based approaches in supporting river revitalisation. The film was funded by a 2022 Monash Data Futures Institute Seed Grant, 'Interdisciplinary data perspectives: Co-developing sustainable future visions for the Citarum'.

The Citarum River, a lifeline supporting over 25 million people, has transformed into one of the world's most polluted waterways, signalling an alarming crisis for the planet. This dire situation sees the river receiving a staggering 20,000 tons of solid waste and 340,000 tons of wastewater daily from more than 600 villages lacking basic waste management and sanitation services. Despite ongoing efforts since 2004 to normalise the river, creating oxbows to mitigate flood impacts, locals have repurposed these oxbows into dumping grounds for waste.

Monash University and Universitas Indonesia have spearheaded a transformative, five-year-long Citarum River Transformation Project. This collaborative initiative involves Monash Art, Design and Architecture, Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Engineering and Social Science Faculties at Universitas Indonesia (UI), the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, local non-profit organisations, industrial partners, and global research communities.

Professor Diego Ramirez-Lovering, the Citarum River Transformation Project Director and Director of the Informal Cities Lab at Monash Art, Design and Architecture said,

“Realising a healthy community along the riversides is a priority in creating economic opportunities and decent livelihoods for the local community. This is where we and the stakeholders collaborate to build infrastructure for clean water availability and waste management, ultimately aiming to revitalise the Citarum River. This documentary, following the recently launched Citarik Ecotourism Master Plan, showcases the importance of collaborative design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative approaches to address this once-thriving river.”

According to Dr Dwinanti Marthanty, Co-Lead of the Citarum Action Research Program, all elements of the Citarik Ecotourism Master Plan are designed through ecological landscape engineering that involves academics and local wisdom of the local community. “This action aims to restore the upper area of the Citarik Basin, spanning 2.3 km, which has been altered due to development, industry, and population density. Currently, one public toilet in Cibodas village and one waste management facility in Padamukti village are under construction,” Dr. Dwinanti said.

Professor Andrew MacIntyre, President of Monash University, Indonesia, stated Monash University’s participation reflects the ongoing commitment to spearhead multidisciplinary and cross-sector collaboration focusing on sustainability, nature-based solutions, and community empowerment. “This commitment is in line with the goal of the global ‘Change It’ campaign in Indonesia, which is to realise cross-sector collaboration in addressing various pressing global challenges, particularly related to climate change and environmental conservation. This action also shows Monash University's dedication to education, research, and synergy in driving change, as stated in Impact 2030 as the University's strategic plan for the next ten years,” explained Professor Andrew.

Tim Stapleton, Minister Counselor of the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, gave a keynote speech that recognised the commitment of the Australian Government to support Indonesia’s climate change and river revitalisation efforts. Mr Stapleton praised the collaborative initiative to revitalise the Citarum River. “The initiative shows the need for a holistic intervention involving local communities and various cross-sectoral parties in facing complex environmental challenges. For this reason, we thank the government and other stakeholders for their support, which is essential to help empower the local economy through the long-term ecotourism plan that is in the pipeline,” said Tim.

The recently launched Citarik Ecotourism Master Plan was carried out collaboratively with the community and local people through a series of ongoing dialogues with academics and researchers from Monash Art, Design and Architecture and the Faculty of Engineering, UI. The main activities of the project so far have included a public consultation agenda led by UI and supported by the West Java Provincial Water Resources Agency (June-August 2023), a participatory design workshop with community representatives led by Monash University and UI (July 2023), as well as extensive engagement with government agencies and local community groups over the past four years, including a feasibility study funded by the Study Melbourne Research Partnership (2021-2022).

CARP Program Manager, Dr Jane Holden explains the work ahead.

“In 2023 our living lab consortium will work with local community, government, industry and NGOs to design the governance, business and operational model for the waste facility that is under construction. As researchers we are interested in behaviours and practices to enable collection, recycling and reuse, and in evaluating the impact of the solution on waste leakage, river health and community wellbeing. Our research is made possible through grants from the Indo-Pacific Plastics Innovation Network, a program supported by the Australian Government and delivered by CSIRO – Australia’s national science agency. It is also supported through KONEKSI, the Australia Indonesia Knowledge and Innovation Collaboration Partnership.

“The journey has just begun. We need partners with a shared vision to create a healthier Citarum River, which supports the pulse of life for the surrounding community and the people of West Java,” closed Professor Diego.

Find out more about the Citarum River Research Program.