BIODIVERSE: the Sustainable Entrepreneurship Education with Multidisciplinary Stakeholders

Located in Mandailing Natal, North Sumatra, Ucok Godang and Sandi Matondang developed the Mandailing Jaya Coffee Cooperative (KOMANJA) to revive the popularity of Mandailing coffee and and grow a strong economic in the community. KOMANJA fosters an entrepreneurial mindset among farmers while encouraging environmental sustainability. By organizing coffee plantations, the community’s mission is to protect the surrounding forest area. However, their condition is still lacking in terms of resources and knowledge in both management and agricultural practices. The Ulu Pangkat Community’ s endeavor is important to be supported as a conduit to bridge academic theory and practical application within the community.

BINUS Entrepreneurship Center (BEC) at Bandung has initiated the Sustainable Entrepreneurship Education Project to engage educators, students, entrepreneurs, agricultural stakeholders and cooperative, in strengthening entrepreneurship values by associating the story of the Mandailing Jaya Coffee Cooperative. This project was held on November 24 – December 08, 2023. Collaborated with Pulitzer Center in the 2023 Impact Seed Fund (ISF) program, BINUS University Entrepreneurship Study Program, Indo Fruits Nation, and Library & Knowledge Center BINUS Bandung. More than 500 participants were involved in discussions on environmental issues, sustainability, and their relation to entrepreneurship through four series of activities, consisting of video-based learning, interactive exhibition, documentary film, and sharing session. Democratizing information regarding environmental understanding, sustainability issues, and reflection on the entrepreneurial skills of the participants, this series of activities is called BIODIVERSE, which interprets the diversity of the environment or the universe with its multidisciplinary nature.

BIODIVERSE began with a sharing session in Ulu Pungkut involving KOMANJA members, representative from Dinas Koperasi dan UMKM Mandailing Natal, lecturer from BINUS Business School, and agricultural lecturer from Universitas Islam Kuantan Singingi, to discuss the success and challenges faced by KOMANJA since its establishment, both in technical aspects and the fundamental understanding of cooperative principles among its members. This forum is a part of a documentary journey which tells the farmer’s reflection on their cooperation (KOMANJA) today and will be screened at the exhibition.

Video-based learning is designed for students, and can be accessed at the BINUS Maya Forum, as an initial overview of the concept of a sustainable business model in the context of building a business, and a medium for expressing their perspectives about KOMANJA. Through an alternate reality game format, interactive exhibition presents multi-sensory experiences of decision-making as entrepreneur, that elaborates the story of Mandailing Jaya Coffee Cooperative (KOMANJA), Batang Gadis National Park, and entrepreneurship theory. BIODIVERSE ended with a sharing session between students who have businesses (Indo Fruits Nation, Caritea Artisan Tea, Agro-universal Nusantara, and Nitro Ventura Coffee) and Indonesian agricultural worker in Japan (Collaborated with LPK Ardin Group), to discuss the implementation and innovation of an agro-industry business.

BIODIVERSE is held from October to December 2023, and belongs to the series of BINUS Festival that involves students from Study Program of Entrepreneurship, Computer Science, Visual Communication Design, Interactive Design & Technology, Interior Design, and student organization Bina Nusantara Computer Club, as committees. BIODIVERSE aims to be a bridge that connects the real implementation of KOMANJA in a sustainable business model with the academic environment of BINUS University at Bandung. Exploring issues through the lens of various multidisciplinary sciences within an academic framework will produce a broad and comprehensive spectrum of outputs. The sustainable entrepreneurship education with multidisciplinary stakeholders is a journey in empowering entrepreneurship issues and fostering innovation in community.