Local Champion Forum 2024: Synergy of Local Community Leaders Driving Sustainable Development

Human Initiative – Over the past 25 years, Human Initiative’s humanitarian work has been closely linked to the collective efforts of collaboration partners in fostering innovation, the crucial role of government in policy-making, and local community leaders in realizing sustainable development goals. As the closest entities to the community, local actors serve as the vanguard in implementing humanitarian programs. In recognition of this, Human Initiative, together with its collaborative partners and government support, organized the Local Champion Forum 2024 in Senggigi, West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (August 16), bringing together 25 Local Community Leaders from various regions across Indonesia.

The Human Development Index (HDI) data indicates that Indonesia’s social and economic progress stands at a score of 74.39, an increase from last year’s 73.77. This improvement reflects advances in key areas such as life expectancy, education, and a decent standard of living, including the fulfillment of basic needs such as food, housing, clothing, education, and healthcare. The current challenge is the need for collective collaboration to sustain and further this progress, especially in supporting sustainable development.

Throughout its 25 years of humanitarian work, Human Initiative has consistently supported sustainable development by launching various empowerment programs through multi-stakeholder collaborations involving government agencies, donors, educational institutions, businesses, practitioners, and other humanitarian organizations. During this journey, Human Initiative has sought to design effective approaches, starting with the establishment of the Indonesia Village Care (IVC) initiative in 2009, enhanced by the Empowerment Cluster Program in 2017, and further refined this year into the Integrated Sustainability Program (ISP).

Tomy Hendrajati, President of Human Initiative, explained that the Integrated Sustainability Program (ISP) was created as an effort to address global challenges by improving the quality of life and capabilities of communities in a sustainable way. The program operates on three pillars: Empowered Villages, Empowered Families, and Empowered Youth.

“These programs encourage each region to develop its human, physical, social, and financial resources to support sustainable regional development, transforming them into Empowered Villages. The Empowerment Cluster at the family level is implemented through program interventions to monitor improvements in various aspects of community well-being, including economic, health, and educational factors, to achieve a better Quality of Life (QoL),” he explained.

Tomy further emphasized that the role of youth as the smallest unit within the Empowered Villages is crucial, as their initiatives will determine the sustainability of the programs. The youth are trained to recognize and develop local potential and become key actors in planning and organizing community activities, driving community engagement, and ensuring sustainability in their respective areas.

In gratitude for the collective goodwill, Human Initiative held the Local Champion Forum 2024 in Senggigi, West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (August 16), under the theme ‘Collaboration in Sustainable Development Through Strengthening Local Community Leaders.’ The forum brought together 25 Local Community Leaders from various regions in Indonesia, along with private sector representatives who support Human Initiative’s empowerment programs. The number of 25 Local Community Leaders present symbolizes the 25-year journey of Human Initiative as of 2024.

“The key to sustainable empowerment in the community lies in the involvement of local actors. It is now imperative that we support them, as these local actors are the first to respond to the challenges in their regions. We are all here to support and guide them to become even stronger,” Tomy stated during his presentation at the Local Champion Forum 2024.

On behalf of Human Initiative, Tomy expressed profound gratitude to all parties who have supported sustainable program activities, both from individuals and institutional partners, domestically and internationally. He also extended thanks to all local actors of Human Initiative, who serve as the front line in ensuring that the programs reach the communities they are intended to serve.

“As a humanitarian organization, we bear a significant responsibility to ensure that every trust placed in us is fulfilled as expected. For this reason, we are committed that yesterday we inspired the villages of local actors, today we inspire Indonesia, and in the next three to five years, we will inspire the world,” Tomy concluded.