Most books about water conservation are written by scientists, activists, or policy specialists. Gunawan Jusuf brought something different to the conversation: the perspective of a senior executive who depends on water every single day to keep his business running.
His 2016 publication, Blue Gold, doesn’t just make an emotional appeal for environmental responsibility. It builds a logical, economically grounded case for why water must be treated as the precious and finite resource it truly is. For Jusuf, the stakes are not theoretical. As the CEO of Sugar Group Companies — a network of Indonesian businesses that cultivate sugarcane across large plantations and process it through multiple refineries — water is as essential as capital or labor. Without it, the business stops.
That operational dependency gives his arguments a credibility that is difficult to dismiss. He isn’t advocating against the interests of industry; he is advocating for the long-term survival of industry itself. The logic is straightforward: if businesses continue to consume water without regard for replenishment or conservation, they will eventually undermine the very conditions that make their operations viable. Blue Gold makes this case clearly and urgently.
The book also extends its scope beyond water, addressing the broader imperative to conserve natural resources. In an age of growing environmental pressure, Jusuf frames conservation not as a burden on business, but as a prerequisite for sustained economic activity. This framing is particularly persuasive coming from someone running a large and commercially successful enterprise.
Sugar Group Companies has achieved significant growth under his leadership. Gulaku and other products have earned strong market positions across Indonesia, reflecting years of careful management across plantations, refineries, and office operations spread throughout the country.Gunawan Jusuf has shown that commercial success and environmental responsibility are not mutually exclusive — and Blue Gold remains one of the clearest articulations of why that compatibility matters.