EARTH DAY -- EMBASSY JAKARTA "GOES GREEN"

UNCLAS JAKARTA 000807 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, EAP/PD, OES/ETC, OES/STC, OES/SAT, OES/PCI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KPAO SENV TPHY TRGY ID SUBJECT: EARTH DAY -- EMBASSY JAKARTA "GOES GREEN" ¶1. (U) Over 80 Indonesian children celebrated Earth Day at the Embassy with Ambassador Hume on April 19. Valerina Daniel, the Indonesian Ministry of Environment's Goodwill Ambassador, helped Ambassador Hume and the children put final touches on an environmental mural, one of seven murals displayed on the U.S. Embassy's fence. Children from multiple local institutions participated in the mural project, designing and painting them in between classes and after school. They included three elementary school beneficiaries of USAID's Decentralized Basic Education program, The Learning Farm (an organic farming training program for vulnerable youth),and PGB Bangau Putih, a school that provides free extracurricular classes (English language, computers, handicrafts and martial arts) to approximately 60 village children every weekend. Fifteen other children from an orphanage in South Jakarta also participated in the event. ¶2. (U) In addition to painting the 8-foot-by-4-foot murals, which showcase various aspects of Indonesia's environment, biodiversity and natural beauty, the children also read poems about the environment, participated in sports (including soccer and hula-hoops) and several environmentally-themed games and activities. There was even a puppet show by the characters from television station Trans-7's "Jalan Sesama," the new Indonesian version of "Sesame Street" funded by USAID. Posters highlighting USAID environmental projects were displayed around the Embassy compound. Coca-Cola provided an "Eco Bus," a specially designed bus powered by environmentally friendly biodiesel and featuring interactive educational activities about the environment. Sponsors donating materials, food and services, included Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, Ace Hardware, Soccer School Indonesia (SSI-Arsenal),The Learning Farm and PGB Bangau Putih. MEDIA COVERAGE ¶3. (U) Embassy Jakarta's Earth Day event garnered extensive, positive press coverage throughout Indonesia, both in print and on television. Almost a dozen articles appeared in major national news dailies, featuring photos of Ambassador Hume painting the murals with children. An article in Jurnal Nasional noted that "last Saturday, the high fence of the U.S. Embassy no longer looked unapproachable." While the coverage focused on the children's activities and the murals, many stories also referred to the many environmental projects that the U.S. is assisting in Indonesia, including the Heart of Borneo and Coral Triangle Initiative. Ambassador Hume was quoted in several articles saying "It is important that young people in Indonesia start to think about the environment at an early age. How Indonesia and the U.S. treat their forests and oceans will affect the rest of the world, and all of our children's futures." ¶4. (U) Television coverage ran on eight major national channels during their regular news broadcasts from April 19 - 22. In addition, "Unyil," the most popular children's television program in Indonesia, devoted an entire segment to the murals on April 22, where the main character (a puppet) helps children paint the murals that ended up on the Embassy, play games inside the Embassy and even look around the Public Affairs Section's Information Resource Library. The tone of the television coverage was uniformly upbeat and positive. In addition, there were numerous wire service photographers there, with Reuters and AFP photos picked up internationally, including as far away as India and even on MSNBC's website. HUME