"My homeland is Indonesia, I love this beautiful country,

my glorious homeland, which I adore forever,

………………Waving palm trees on the beach……….”

The song ‘Rayuan Pulau Kelapa’ started a discussion held by Stube HEMAT Yogyakarta with the theme of  the maritime economics program at 'Klotokan Coffee', Kledokan, Depok, Sleman (Saturday, 28/01/2023). The discussion raised the topic 'What's wrong with Indonesian marine: The complexity of coastal problems,' to encourage students to be 'literate' on coastal areas and the occurring problems.

In the introduction to the discussion, Sekti Mulatsih, an environmental practitioner, explained the meaning of the coast, as a transition area between land and sea. The landward part includes dry land or submerged in water, which is still influenced by the characteristics of the sea, such as tides, sea breeze, and saltwater seepage; while those towards the sea include parts of the sea which are still influenced by natural processes that occur on land, such as sedimentation and freshwater flow as well as the results of human activities on land, including pollution. While the beach area is a sandy area to the sea border. The explanation opened students' minds to understand the differences between sea, beach, and coast.

"Ocean is the future of the nation because Indonesia has an ocean area of 2/3 of the land area, namely 3.1 million km² of the ocean and 1,905 million km² of land, has mega-biodiversity with ± 30% of mangrove forests and ± 15% of the world's coral reefs, has the longest coastline in the world with 16.766 islands and a coastline of ± 81.000 km, has regulation Law No.4/PRP/1960 concerning Indonesian Waters which was recognized in the United Nations (UN)–UNCLOS 1982 convention on the law of the sea, has abundant natural resources in the form of fisheries and aquaculture, energy and minerals, mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass beds, and tourism, has the potential for carbon sinks and oxygen providers, has the support of world organization that coastal areas are natural resources that need to be protected and managed based on economic and social development," the source person said.

Currently, coastal and marine areas are increasingly threatened due to massive human activities upstream, in the form of industry, fisheries, agriculture, tourism, transportation, and settlements. The accumulation of unmanaged waste on land leaks into the ocean, while the liquid waste from human activities also flows from the mainland due to limited processing in the upstream area. The physical development of areas causes the decrease of carrying capacity of the environment, the rising sea levels, and the intentional accumulation of the sea that changes natural habitats and triggers other problems.

In the sharing session, participants shared their experiences with marine life. Vin Hukum from Aru Islands told how fishermen catch crabs, shrimp, and fish use 'bubu' or nets by considering the ocean currents, although the current catches are not as many as before. Sarlota Wantaar from Tual island explained the tradition of 'sasi' in Maluku, a prohibition not to take sea creature in certain areas. Rido from East Sumba revealed the dilemma between seaweed cultivation areas as the main ingredient for jelly and fish fishing areas. Currently, fishermen have to go further to sea because fish populations are declining due to damage to coral reefs in seaweed cultivation areas. Fitri from Manggarai explained that the coastal area of Labuhanbajo is polluted by garbage and domestic waste due to tourism activities and people's poor behavior in managing waste.

The discussion inspired students to be literate about coastal problems, especially in their area of origin, and to think about what can be done to preserve the coastal environment by involving the local community, and continue to generate prosperity for the community. Let’s get ‘Jalesveva Jayamahe’ back – It is at the sea that we have triumph.***