BASF Indonesia and Prestasi Junior Indonesia instill the need for sustainable development among the younger generation

• 323 students in Indonesia came up with ideas for sustainable development in the ‘Young Voices for a Sustainable Future – Innovation Challenge for a Just Transition’
• Best team receives funding of USD 3,000 to realize ideas and is entitled to represent Indonesia in the global virtual exchange

 

Jakarta, 15 August 2022 – To increase awareness and enable active participation of the younger generation in achieving Sustainable Development Goals, BASF Indonesia partnered with Prestasi Junior Indonesia (PJI) to implement a competition titled “Young Voices for a Sustainable Future – Innovation Challenge for a Just Transition.” Held virtually since May 2022, 323 students from 35 high schools/vocational schools across three universities in 20 cities/regencies in Indonesia were challenged to develop innovative solutions that have the potential to help overcome some of the current global challenges, especially those caused by climate change and help move to a sustainable economy and society. This initiative is part of BASF’s global societal engagement project, and is being held across eight countries including Indonesia, Uganda, Nigeria, Greece, Hungary, Vietnam, Brazil, and Mexico in partnership with Junior Achievement, a global NGO.

 

President Director of BASF Indonesia, Agus Ciputra, said, "One in five Indonesians is from the younger generation, aged between 15 - 24. Through this competition, BASF encourages Indonesia's younger generation to voice ideas and play a central role in building a sustainable future. By facilitating the involvement of youngsters in addressing global challenges like climate change, we believe this will be the building block that will provide them the opportunity, resources, and confidence towards contributing to a better community and world in the future."

 

Academic and Operational Advisor of Prestasi Junior Indonesia, Robert Gardiner, appreciated BASF's support and said, "This initiative is one of the important steps in preparing students to become future leaders and decision-makers of tomorrow who are innovative and creative while promoting the principles of justice and sustainability. The younger generation must be a part, in fact even the main influencers, for creating future solutions, especially in the face of global challenges such as climate change. We are grateful to BASF for its commitment towards this initiative and for playing an active role by listening, engaging with the participants in helping find solutions, and giving them the opportunity to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals."

 

From a total of 29 ideas shared, the ‘Covarsi’ team from SMAN 81 Jakarta was adjudged the winner and received a funding prize of USD 3,000. The team will also get intensive guidance for six months to realize the solution created. The team of six students presented ‘Covarsi’, their start-up business that sells embroidery creations and tote bags made from fabric fibers recycled from pineapple leaf waste. Through this idea, ‘Covarsi’ aims to deal with the massive pineapple leaf waste issue in the Cijoged Village area, Subang, as well as provide an economic impact by empowering the local community as craftsmen for their products. The judges, consisting of BASF Indonesia management, academics, and consultants in the field of Sustainable Development Goals and green economy, assessed their ideas as being able to contribute effectively to the handling of climate change while applying the concept of a sustainable economy.

 

Davina Andari Putri, one of the members of the ‘Covarsi’ team from SMAN 81 Jakarta, said, "This award motivates us to continue with our efforts and even multiply the impact of the idea that we have been running since last year. We hope that even more young people will be inspired and will dare to realize real actions in maintaining the sustainability of the environment together. We are grateful for this opportunity given to us."

 

Furthermore, the ‘Covarsi’ team from SMAN 81 Jakarta will also focus on preparing to become Indonesia's representative in the Global Virtual Exchange event held by BASF with Junior Achievement Worldwide (the parent organization of Prestasi Junior Indonesia) in December. They will face teams from seven other countries, including Uganda, Nigeria, Greece, Hungary, Vietnam, Brazil, and Mexico. Through the program, volunteers from BASF were actively involved in the learning and mentoring process to share their experiences and inspiration with the participants.

 

 

For more info please contact:

Mala Ekayanti                                                              Jaya Panggabean

Head of Corporate Affairs                                              Communications Manager

BASF Indonesia                                                             Prestasi Junior Indonesia       

mala.ekayanti@basf.com                                           jaya.p@prestasijunior.org

 

 

 

 

 

About BASF Indonesia 

BASF has been investing in Indonesia since 1976. Today, BASF solutions contribute to the success of its customers in Indonesia in nearly all industries, including agriculture, food, home & personal care, automotive, paints and coatings , and chemicals. The head office of BASF in Indonesia is located in Jakarta, with production sites in Cengkareng, Cimanggis , and Merak – all of which are halal certified. In 2021, BASF posted sales of approximately €567 million to customers in Indonesia and employed 508 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF in Indonesia is available at www.basf.com/id.

 

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Around 111,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio comprises six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care, and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of €78.6 billion in 2021. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. Further information at www.basf.com.

 

About Prestasi Junior Indonesia

Prestasi Junior Indonesia (PJI) is a member of the world's largest non-profit organization, JA Worldwide, dedicated to equipping the younger generation with work and entrepreneurship. We create a path to employability, job creation, and financial success by providing hands-on learning focusing on job readiness, financial literacy, and entrepreneurship. Benefiting more than 390,000 young people since 2014, Prestasi Junior Indonesia is one of the organizations with the scale, experience, and network to forge a brighter future for the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, decision-makers, and leaders in the country. Over the past four years, Prestasi Junior Indonesia, together with the JA network, has been included in the list of the 10 most impactful NGOs in the world (ranked 6th in 2022) by thedotgood (formerly called NGO Advisor) based in Geneva.

 

For more information, you may go to:

Website: www.prestasijunior.org| Instagram: @prestasijunior | Facebook: www.facebook.com/prestasijuniorID