Youth Dialogue Studio – Indonesia

The 21st of August marked the launch of a three-part series of youth events facilitated by the United in Diversity Foundation, host of the of SDSN Southeast Asia Secretariat and co-host of SDSN Indonesia, in collaboration with MEDCO Foundation and a youth-led organization Indonesian Future Leaders. The Youth Dialogue Studio (YDS) focuses on enabling SDG 17, Revitalizing the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development , and in the spirit of “No One Left Behind”, aims to increase engagement on the SDGs among Indonesian youth.

Indonesia has more than 15 million youth between the ages of 15 and 35. They represent a key stakeholder to the SDG process in Indonesia, not only as a group of future beneficiaries, but also the movers, initiators, and implementers of the goals and associated projects in decades to come. The Studio is designed to welcome and inspire contributions from youth leaders from various youth organizations in Indonesia, build a common trust, and foster future collaborations among them.

YDS events will be held once a month, from August to October 2016. The series is expected to seed SDG-oriented solutions for the region and be implemented under the heading of the SDSN Youth Action Forum, to be held next year. In this occasion, youth voices and ideas will be shared with various stakeholders including government, civil society organizations, and private sector companies within the region.

The first Youth Dialogue Studio was held on Sunday, August 21, 2016, at The Energy Building in Jakarta, themed “Youth Productivity”. Twenty-five youth attended from seventeen youth led organizations to share their thoughts on the SDGs and build collective awareness regarding each youth organization’s contribution to SDGs. The collaborations started in this series are expected to grow as each YDS event focuses on a new theme to inspire creative inputs and innovative thinking from a variety of Indonesian youth.