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Iskandar Waworuntu: A green piece of heaven on earth
Entering Bumi Langit: âIn designing permaculture, it is important to create a long-term strategy as we are dealing with space and time,â Iskandar says
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span class="inline inline-center">Entering Bumi Langit: 'In designing permaculture, it is important to create a long-term strategy as we are dealing with space and time,' Iskandar says.
From atop the Bumi Langit organic farm, Iskandar Waworuntu said that the best way to remain independent was to be a farmer.
'Here we underpin the need for a balance in the human-nature relationship through permaculture,' says the half Indonesian-English founder.
Located in Imogiri, Yogyakarta, the farm is just a short distance from the royal cemetery. While Iskandar named it Bumi Langit (earth and sky), the locals are more familiar with its Javanese name, Songgo Langit (sky pole).
However, the place can be hard to find as, apart from a wooden sign that says 'KM 3', there isn't much directional signage. Inside, a self-sustained farm houses diverse plants and poultry.
The farm is divided into five areas. At the very top, Iskandar and his wife have an organic restaurant called Warung Bumi Langit, while below he has built eco-friendly houses. Underneath, he has an organic plantation spread out along with a water filter system, biogas system, solar panel, animal farm and a bamboo house for visitors to stay.
'In designing permaculture, it is important to create a long-term strategy as we are dealing with space and time,' since he established the farm in 2003, his 15-year plan is to incorporate hundreds of plants to create a forest ecosystem so as to create a self-sustained food supply.
Within 11 years, his sanctuary has a become a field-trip destination for various schools, such as the Jakarta-based British International School (BIS) and Jakarta International School (JIS), local schools in Yogyakarta, top Indonesian university Gadjah Mada University (UGM) and even volunteers from across the globe.
The 60-year-old founder says Bumi Langit also employs locals and distributes their harvest to local markets.
And it doesn't end there.
'As farmers, we need creative elements. This is why we are different. Bumi Langit provides three-day live-in programs and workshops,' Iskandar says that this is how the farm collaborates with the Bumi Langit Institute.
The institute is a foundation he established to promote Islamic etiquette, also known as adab, which focuses on good manners and humanity. Not long ago, it held the International Conference Toward Environmental Islamic Village, during which volunteers and experts from Europe, Africa and Asia were welcomed.
However, Iskandar admits that he owes his success to his 35-year spiritual journey.
A decade ago, he gradually permeated steep hills with a myriad of edible trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals.
'I initially moved to Yogyakarta to establish an Islamic school after I became a Muslim in 2000. But it didn't happen because I was disappointed with the kyais [preachers] approach.'
Although his family is associated with the extravagance of Balinese cultural tourism in the subversive 1970s, Iskandar undertook an ambitious endeavor when he was just a teenager.
'I quit school when I was 14 years old. I learned Bhagavad Gita, joined the hippies in Byron Bay, Australia and even experimented with psychoactive drugs for liberation purposes, which led me to my environmental concerns.'
After his return, instead of running the famous travelers drop-in Tandjung Sari Hotel Bali with his family, he opted to join the Yogyakarta-based dissident theater group of WS Rendra Bengkel Theater in the New Order era.
The 60-year-old permaculturist admits it was arduous.
'It was considered good to be critical of the government during that time. From one performance, 50 percent of the profit went to Rendra's family,' he says. 'But I was lucky because I received Rp 25,000 [US$2.1] per month from my family, the others were always struggling.'
After more than 8 years of exploring, he researched social condition, injustice and traditional structure as he discovered that political and economic liberties should go hand-in-hand. Through the Bumi Langit Institute, he organizes discourses on individual lifestyles and duty due to restore the human-nature relationship.
In 1982, he left the theater group, sold his house in Menteng to pursue his farming dreams for four years in Bengkulu. But he went bankrupt instead.
'It was a big failure, I had nothing left. But I met my wife there, so I moved to Bali in 1987 and established an organic farm, and used the products for Café Batu Jimbar [the first organic café in Bali],'
At that time, his family business had expanded from the hospitality business to a world-class ceramic enterprise called Jenggala Keramik. But Iskandar decided to learn about international permaculture in Bali and left the limelight.
He then established the Waqf foundation to provide financial security to others.
'Five percent of our income goes to our Waqf foundation,' he says, 'Then, in 2013, my son and his friends initiated the first Permablitz, a permaculture program for urbanites in Yogyakarta.'
Inspired by the Melbourne-based Permablitz, the younger movement's activities are occasionally held in Yogyakarta, Bali and Jakarta.
'Imagine being able to pick what you want to eat from your own yard, that is freedom,'
Iskandar says everyday he harvests different types of vegetables and fruits for Warung Bumi Langit as well as for his daily needs.
This unpolluted air and zero-waste neighborhood is surely not an overnight sensation. Even it was difficult in the early years, Iskandar remarked the heard-earned rewards gave him sufficient success.
'But for other people the question is, how can you be independent from the system if you still enjoy their products?' He asked rhetorically. 'So, measure your needs, commit to that, because everything has its consequences.'
' Photos by Banyubening Prieta
