Ikhwan Arief: Bangsring Ecotourism Rises from the Pandemic

Three sources from the Not a Dreamer episode of KICK Andy return from the event that they attended years ago. This time, they are here to discuss how their activities are progressing as well as how their visit to Kick Andy has affected their respective programs.

Ikhwan Arief, who made an appearance on Kick Andy about seven years ago, was the first guest star. 2015 saw the creation of a tourism awareness group by the Ikhwan in their own internal village, Bangsring Village, Banyuwangi.

He has now established himself as an inspiration for the nearby villages with the village of Bangsring. In fact, Bangsring has been designated as a pilot tourism village by a number of districts and islands in Indonesia.

The main element, according to the Ikhwan, is safeguarding Bangsring's ecosystem. "Conservation, not tourism, is my goal as well as the people of Bangsring's current objective.

According to Ikhwan in the metro tv episode that aired today, "I think that the more the environment is protected, the more prosperous it will be. The chairman of the Samudera Bakti Fishermen Group claimed that the number of his members was rising.

In this manner, the area of conservation coverage is expanding. The Kalpataru award, given to him in 2017 before President Jokowi for his work in Banyuwangi, was given in recognition of that work by the Minister of Environment and Forestry.

A comparison study between Bangsring and Wakatobi was done by the manager of that tourist destination in the same year. He actually acknowledged that he was perplexed by their arrival because he believed Wakatobi had achieved great success in the travel and tourism industry.

It transpired that Wakatobi is indeed cool after we observed it, but the main actors are not locals. The Ikhwan's literature aims to inspire the neighborhood to rise up, have self-confidence, and have the guts to run their own neighborhood.

When he was only 24 years old, the Ikhwan began its restoration of Bangsring with the goal of bettering themselves and their surroundings. The 38-year-old man is adamant about using bombs to put an end to fishing.

The Ikhwan were disregarded due to his inexperience as a fisherman and his youth. In spite of this, he persisted in his crusade against fishing with bombs and made slow but steady progress.

The Ikhwan stressed numerous times that they should continue to preserve local wisdom in order to develop village potential. He claims that manufactured tourism is only a means of relaxation, but that cultural diversity cannot be eradicated because it will result in new expressions.

Currently, more than 200 fishermen in Bangsring are engaged in coral reef conservation, of which 100 are members of the local community who run tourism businesses. The same spirit is also fostered by the mutual cooperation of those who are enthusiastic about constructing the village.

According to the Ikhwan, about 40 villages have also revived to imitate their own version of Bangsring. Bangsring's youth, as well as the parents of fishermen who had previously only completed elementary-junior high school, are now beginning to care about education in addition to their enthusiasm for conserving the environment.

The arrival of students who had completed internships in the village was one of the contributing factors. The tourism industry in Bangsring Village suffered during the pandemic.

Several fishermen were finally let go from ecotourism jobs by the Ikhwan after money ran out during the second year of the pandemic. In its place, they engage in more environmental initiatives, sanitize the ocean, and maintain and repaint the boat.

Stretching tourism now started to increase. The percentage of tourists visiting Bangsring Village has risen to 30% of the average.

The majority of visitors—about 10%—also go souvenir shopping. In spite of the fact that the number is still significantly above average, society is once again filled with hope.

Additionally, he anticipates that village tourism will expand in the coming years.

According to Ikhwan in the Metro TV episode that aired today, "I think that the more the environment is protected, the more prosperous it will be.