My involvement in environmental issues started when I was a project leader of climate gender education with Teens Go Green Indonesia in 2021, which took place in Samarinda as the pilot project. I provided a capacity building for 35 households living across the slums near the Karang Mumus River. It then continued in 2022–2023, where I was privileged to participate in the YSEALI Academic Fellowship 2022 at the East-West Center and Youth Biodiversity Leaders 2023 in Singapore.
Having participated in these programmes contributed to the extension of my academic and leadership journey in environmental and conservation working areas. These activities have inspired me to extend an independent instrument of public participation, especially by involving women and vulnerable groups, as well as capacity in the best practice of community-based climate resilience.
That is why I decided to work together with the East-West Center to build the East-West Center Innovation Corps. This corps aims to provide capacity building, extensive research, and extended curricula on social science nexus environmental issues at the Department of Social Development Studies, Mulawarman University. Our targeted research will focus on community resilience in the coastal areas of East Kalimantan.
Our main concern is social inclusion in environmental threats, particularly in local communities in East Kalimantan. The local communities, especially those in the coastal areas and are categorised at the bottom-level, often left out from the decision-making process regarding environmental policy. In seeing this matter, the best-yet possible solution to address this gap is to ensure a good governance concept that walks alongside community-based approaches.
The effort consists of capacity building in environmental management and policy advocacy awareness for coastal communities. By providing essential community empowerment, local society will enhance their leadership and optimise knowledge in leading their communities to achieve a well-targeted policy. I believe this approach can identify every gap that still sticks on the grassroots communities by adhering it through an extensive dialogue with them as the tool of community empowerment.
This project has bestowed me with tremendous opportunities, one of which is as an Indonesian delegate for the AIS Youth Conference 2023, a flagship event of the 1st High Level Meeting of the Archipelagic and Island States Forum. I had the chance to promote good ocean governance as my main thematic focus and further action plan. In addition, this opportunity enabled me to support other thematic areas of AIS during the Youth Declaration, such as climate action, entrepreneurship, and marine plastic debris.
AIS Youth Conference 2023 allowed me to voice up the practical action of good ocean governance by encouraging public participation, community development, and mainstreaming socio-economic aspects for coastal communities, mainly Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). Through the conference, I was able to engage with youth representatives across archipelagic and island countries. Through knowledge-sharing, we were able to propose evidence-based policy by combining science with the policy of the future ocean. This is an excellent example of multilateral cooperation among youth.
I plan to utilise results of the conference to leverage the best practices of good governance and environmental justice in my research and advocacy platform, #EWCInnovationcorps. The outcomes of the AIS Youth Conference 2023, such as the youth declaration and all thematic focus areas, have enriched me comprehensively. Such topics like climate action, entrepreneurship, and marine plastic debris provided me with knowledge on how to find a practical solution and opportunity for the vulnerable coastal communities who are affected by the existence of the New Capital City on our island.
Having participated in the conference has boosted my ability to maximise my environmental-society leadership and academics. Combating climate change and environmental issues, such as sea-level rise, marine debris pollution, and coral bleaching, requires not only a scientific approach but also a social science approach, such as stakeholder engagement, a behavioral approach, and community development.
The AIS Youth Conference has opened up a strong pattern, especially connecting the dots on transforming science into policy. The more practical knowledge I gained from the conference will be extended and leveraged for my current project with #EWCInnovationcorps and local stakeholders in East Kalimantan.
Written by:
Nor Anisa
AIS Youth Delegate, Indonesia
