E-STAR ITB : Nurturing the Spirit of Green Entrepreneurship in Asian Students

February 12, 2012

By Muhammad Fikri

Editor Muhammad Fikri

BANDUNG, itb.ac.id - To nurture the spirit of green entrepreneurship among Asian students, ITB Students Body (KM-ITB) organized a conference for Asian students called E-STAR ITB. It's a pioneering event that offers a new perspective and calls students of all majors to go back to nature. 17 participants from Indonesia, Brunei, Myanmar, and India gathered for the week-long series of events 01-08/02/12). E-STAR is envisioned to inspire and to foster leadership and entrepreneurship with social and ecological sensibilities. The core of the program is three days of conference that started with presentations from panelists, and then plenary sessions on the principles of green entrepreneurship, breakout session, and closed with a debrief for campaign. During the Asian Summit session, E-STAR formulated 7 principles of green business for start-up business, and 8 action plans for a green business campaign.

Professor Ir. Surna Tjahja Djajadiningrat, M.Sc. PhD, or familiarly known as Prof. Naya, a member of the steering committee, was present during the program. Rika Anggraini, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility the Body Shop Indonesia and Shana Fatina Sukarsono, alumnus of industrial engineering and the president director of Tina Mitra Mandiri were also present during the event.

Instill the Spirit of Green Entrepreneurship Early On

Besides conferences for Asian students, E-STAR ITB also has a series of other engaging events, One of them is an international seminar under the theme of green business. Henry Bastaman, Deputy 7 Ministry of Environment Republic of Indonesia was invited as the keynote speaker. Other prominent figures who gave a speech in the event are Bapak Hasnul Suhaimi, President Director of PT XL Axiata Tbk, Deden Supriyatman, Advisor of Education, Research and Capacity Building Total E&P Indonesia, and Dwi Larso, Ph.D, lecturer of Entrepreneurship in ITB School of Business and Management (SBM ITB).

"We invited diverse speakers for the seminar under the concept of ABG: Academical, Business, and Government," said Alvian Chris Pradana from Regional and Urban Planning Studies, one of the committee of E-STAR. The seminar was held in English and discussed the best green business practices in companies all over Indonesia. The focus of the seminar wasn't only on green business but also on the ecological and financial impact of green business practices on the companies.

"From the seminar, we're able to conclude that companies don't necessarily adopt green business because they're working on green industry, but also because green business practices have a positive impact for the companies' financial condition and for the environment as well," said Reza lalala. Other events include company visit to the Body Shop Indonesia where participants learned how to implement a green work environment. "We must instill the spirit of green entrepreneurship early on," said Suzy Hutomo dari The Body Shop Indonesia. Participants also toured the ITB ground, visited schools, enjoyed a cultural performance from Saung Angklung Udjo, and planted trees on the banks of Cikapundung River.