Ecotourism: A Key Strategy For Realizing Golden Indonesia 2045

The Golden Indonesia 2045 initiative aims to transform Indonesia into a globally competitive, inclusive, and sustainable developed nation by the centenary of its independence. However, challenges such as environmental degradation, climate change, and interregional economic inequality demand a reorientation of the national development paradigm from extractive modalities to a green economy. This article aims to analyze ecotourism as a key strategy in supporting the achievement of the four main pillars of the Golden Indonesia 2045 Vision. Using a qualitative approach based on a comprehensive literature review, this study examines the interaction between biodiversity conservation, local community empowerment through Community-Based Ecotourism (CBE), and national green economic growth. The study results show that ecotourism not only functions as an instrument for non-extractive natural resource-based economic diversification but also as a catalyst for preserving macro-ecosystems, increasing per capita income of rural communities, and strengthening local cultural identity. The integration of sustainable spatial planning policies, investment in environmentally friendly infrastructure, and innovative funding schemes such as payment for ecosystem services (PES) are found to be determining factors for the success of this transition. Thus, ecotourism has been proven to have a multi-dimensional strategic value that is capable of bridging high economic growth without sacrificing environmental carrying capacity, so it is worthy of being made the mainstream in Indonesia's long-term development planning towards 2045.