RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – The Indonesian government is encouraging academician from higher education institutions in the country to play a greater role in addressing various local environmental issues. This push is linked to the Indonesia ASRI Movement, an initiative by the country's President Prabowo Subianto, to create a healthy, clean, orderly, and sustainable environment.

Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Brian Yuliarto, confirmed this after meeting Prabowo at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Monday, May 4, 2026. He said Prabowo had asked universities to support regional governments, ranging from waste management to environmental planning.

"(President Prabowo) asked us at the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology how far the progress has gone in academic programs and lecturers who can support regional governments," Brian said, as quoted from the Indonesian Presidential Secretariat.

"This includes researchers and professors in relevant expertise, such as architecture for the aesthetics of public parks, environmental engineering, mechanical engineering for waste management, and so on," he said.

Brian added that Prabowo hopes each regional government will have a team of university experts. To that end, he will soon consolidate universities across Indonesia to realize them.

"The President asked for a more structured approach, so that perhaps all campuses can play a role," Brian said.

Prabowo first initiated the Indonesia ASRI Movement at the National Coordination Meeting of the Central and Regional Governments in Bogor Regency, West Java Province, on Monday, February 2, 2026. "ASRI" in the name is an acronym of "Aman, Sehat, Resik, Indah" (Safe, Healthy, Clean, Beautiful).

"This is just a name, but in practice, all government agencies must lead the (environment) cleanup. Schoolchildren are okay (to involve). In the morning, it takes 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or half an hour. If there are hundreds of thousands (involved), that would be (done) fast," he said.

One landmark feature of the movement is what he called "gentengisasi" (roughly translated as "roof-tile-ization"). He seeks to replace zinc-based metal roof sheets with roof tiles, believing the former to be "uncomfortable" and "making Indonesia not look beautiful".

"This zinc roofing is hot for the occupants. It also rusts. So Indonesia can’t be beautiful if all the roofs are made of zinc. I want all roofs in Indonesia to use roof tiles (form)," Prabowo said.