Gamelan music art performance at Nuanu Creative City Bali during Suara Festival 2024

TABANAN, Balitopnews.com - Nuanu, a 44-hectare creative area on the southwest coast of Bali, continues to develop as a model of sustainable and inclusive investment that places people and nature as its top priority. Throughout 2025, Nuanu will not only build a vibrant creative ecosystem, but also create real social and environmental impacts for the surrounding community.

The vision to bring Bali to the global stage, Nuanu collaborates with global and local stakeholders. However, the commitment to empowering local talent is paramount. As of June 2025, 97% of Nuanu's workforce will be Indonesian, with 84% of them coming from the local Balinese community. This makes Nuanu a space for local communities to participate in shaping regional planning that prioritizes community and environmental sustainability. From internal projects to road infrastructure planning, decision-making at Nuanu is carried out collaboratively between management, local government, and the central government, with a focus on the direction of Bali's development in accordance with procedures. "Let me clarify again, we are not anti-investment here," Ni Luh Djelantik said as Senator of the Republic of Indonesia for Bali. "We are always open to working with investors and institutions that are committed to developing Bali in accordance with values and methods that comply with legal procedures. Nuanu is one of the real manifestations of such investment, especially regarding the positive social and environmental impacts it provides. However, that does not mean we will stop monitoring its development. We will continue to monitor and support to ensure that Bali's identity is maintained," she added.

Social impact Through the Nuanu Social Fund (NSF), which is allocated from 5% of total revenue, Nuanu is committed to ensuring that the surrounding community grows together, creating a self-sufficient community from within Nuanu to the surrounding areas. During the period of January-March 2025, Nuanu has distributed funds of IDR 474 million (in 2024: IDR 788 million) through various social initiatives. Several initiatives reflect the NSF's spirit of collective development, such as the Bale Ganjur Program which supports 150 young Balinese musicians from five Sekaa Teruna Teruni through training and provision of musical instruments. This value is also seen in Bali's annual major cultural celebration, where Nuanu provides assistance in the form of tools and necessities worth IDR 61 million to 13 Banjar in Beraban Village to support the creation of Ogoh-Ogoh for Nyepi 2025. In the previous year, Nuanu made important history by bringing Ogoh-Ogoh to Burning Man, Nevada and becoming the first Indonesian art installation to appear at one of the largest global annual festivals.

More than just culture, Nuanu also supports high-impact initiatives driven by local changemakers, such as: training and providing work tools to 15 female entrepreneurs from Nyambu Village through the LASKMI program; supporting Gusde, a 19-year-old Balinese innovator to build a pico-hydro power plant for over 100 farmers in Subak Uma Kumbuh through the Dana Asa Kriya program; free health checks for 729 Beraban Village residents through a community health program; and sexual and reproductive health education for 310 female students in the Kediri area, Tabanan. Environmental Impact Nuanu's commitment to the environment is a major foundation, by maintaining 70% of its land as green space and a no-logging policy. This proves that development projects can still be in harmony between innovation and tradition. Nature must always come first. Nuanu has also designated electric vehicles as the official public transportation in the area.

Nuanu’s approach to waste management was designed holistically from the start. As a result, Nuanu’s recycling rate has reached 95% of the total waste generated. This can only be achieved if the entire area planning is based on the principles of circular economy and sustainability, involving experts to build a truly green and community-oriented area. Protecting biodiversity is also a key environmental mission at Nuanu. Recent efforts include: increasing the survival rate of butterflies by 20%; conserving more than 400 native plants; planting more than 15,000 trees using the Miyawaki method; and preserving more than 500 orchids. “We are determined to build together and do it the right way,” Lev Kroll said as CEO of Nuanu Creative City. “One of the main ideas behind Nuanu is to show that building community and protecting nature is not only a must, but also a strong business strategy. We believe that doing the right thing helps us attract the right people — from investors, partners, to guests — creating more meaningful value for Nuanu in the long term.” Nuanu applies the double bottom line philosophy—balancing financial health with meaningful social and environmental contributions. This approach underpins every decision made, ensuring economic growth is always aligned with positive impacts for people and the planet.

Lev continued, “Every day we learn — through input and ideas that help us navigate this area. We appreciate every input, idea, and criticism given and we will never stop looking for new ways to integrate nature, technology, and the incredibly rich culture of Bali,” he said. (Rls/Btnc)