TEMPO.CO, Bogor - A botanical garden in Bogor, known as Kebun Raya Bogor (KRB), celebrated its 196th anniversary on May 18. The celebration was marked with the signing of Memorandum of Understanding between the KRB-Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Solok Botanical Garden management in West Sumatra, and Batam regional government to build a new botanical garden.
Head of KRB-LIPI Plant Reservation, Mustaid Siregar, stated that KRP will maintain its role as the place to reserve Indonesian plants. "Kebun Raya Bogor as part of LIPI will keep improving the quality and quantity of researches by cooperating with many entities in domestic and international levels," he said on Tuesday during the anniversary celebration.
He asserted the KRB-LIPI would keep upholding its mission to be the best reference in building another botanical garden all over Indonesia. He also stated that KRB has agreed to cooperate with Kyoto University, Japan, to conserve the Amorphophallus titanium, a giant flower which has been the pride of KRB. The flower has been introduced to international entities and was included in various international exhibitions. The flower also represented Indonesia in a horticulture exhibition in South Korea last month.
LIPI Head Lukman Hakim stated that the conservation of plants was an important part of education, biodiversity, as well as tourism. He explained that in an ecosystem, every entity has its own role, and that all entities are interconnected.
"Environmental degradation will harm the balance of ecosystem and can cause a natural disaster," Lukman said, emphasizing the importance of environmentally-friendly lifestyle.
ROSALINA
