As part of the Indonesian Government’s efforts to ensure all business operations are ethical and beneficial to society, it is mandatory for corporations to initiate community development programs. Only a few go the extra mile to assess and enhance the impact of such initiatives. At TBS, we take a proactive approach to not only manage our resources, but also to align our programs with company’s values, balance expectations between various stakeholders, and avoid greenwashing claims. Through meticulous evaluations we have uncovered compelling evidence that our community development programs deliver tangible results that benefit both our organization and the communities we serve.

Take, for instance, our banana farming and cultivation program at one of the residents’ backyards in Jawa village, where ABN is hosted. As we fulfill our TBS2030 commitment of carbon neutrality in 2030, we must make sure that the transition is fair and inclusive. It must place people first and pay attention to the regions and communities to mitigate the risk of adverse economic consequences and social disruption, creating decent work opportunities and leaving no one behind. We adopt a localized community approach by engaging local stakeholders for capacity building and knowledge sharing. As Jawa village is identified as an agropolitan area, a region with a specific population developed to optimize its agricultural activities and commodities that promises real economic and socio-psychological empowerment for the communities, this initiative has involved 227 families and planted over 1,500 Cavendish banana trees.