In the Green Batik Pekalongan Pilot Project, Standar Industri Hijau (SIH), or Green Industry Standard, is a pathway for helping batik workshops understand what sustainability means inside their daily production, from the cloth they use, the wax they melt, the dyes they apply, the water they consume, to the wastewater they release.
SIH is a standard developed by Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry to encourage industries to reduce environmental impact. In the context of batik, SIH refers to the official green industry standard for batik production under Minister of Industry Regulation No. 10 of 2023. The standard looks at both technical and management aspects.
This matters deeply for Pekalongan. Known as the Capital of Batik, the city is home to around 1,500 batik workshops. Batik is part of the city’s identity, economy, and cultural pride. But behind the beauty of batik cloth, the sector also faces serious challenges: uncontrolled groundwater use, land subsidence, wastewater entering rivers, unsafe working conditions, low appeal for younger generations, and increasing market demand for environmentally friendly products. That is why SIH is important for the Green Batik Pekalongan project. It gives batik owners a clear framework to move from good intention to measurable action.
The Green Batik Pekalongan Pilot Project aims to introduce a model that can be adapted at both workshop and neighbourhood levels, while minimizing environmental impact, conserving water resources, and supporting Pekalongan’s economic resilience. One of the project’s targets is for Batik Champions to receive official SIH certification from the government. In this sense, SIH is not just paperwork. It is a bridge that connects cultural heritage with environmental responsibility. It also helps batik workshops prepare for a future where sustainability is not only expected, but needed.