26 July 2011: The second Indonesia-US Joint Commission Meeting was held in Bali, Indonesia, and included reports from the working groups on climate and environment, and on energy.

The co-chairs of the working group on climate and environment reported on accomplishments in priority areas, including intensified consultations on global climate change action, tropical forests, environmental management and governance, and biodiversity and ecosystems conservation. The working group identified plans to: pilot reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, as well as conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stock (REDD+) programmes; strengthen climate change measuring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems; advance the establishment of the climate change center; protect biodiversity, including habitats that are critical to the survival of orangutans and tigers; combat illegal logging; and promote sustainable management of forest and marine ecosystems.

The co-chairs of the working group on energy reported on progress in: implementing the recommendations of the US-Indonesia Energy Investment Roundtable held in May 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia, including on meeting Indonesia’s production targets for both fossil fuels and renewable energy; planning a second US-Indonesia Energy Investment Roundtable focused on conventional and unconventional gas to be held in late 2011; and cooperating on Indonesian efforts to slow the growth of emissions from its energy sector, in particular through a $16.2 million Indonesia Clean Energy Development project that will install 120 MW of clean energy and increase access for 1.2 million Indonesians to clean energy.

The two countries plan to hold the next meeting of the Joint Commission in the US in 2012. [US Press Release]