Yogyakarta — Efforts to build peace and strengthen community social resilience have once again come into the spotlight. On Tuesday, April 21, 2026, Mitra Wacana received a visit from eight representatives of the Indonesian Justice and Peace Foundation (YKPI) and the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) at their office in Yogyakarta. The visit, which began at 10:00 AM local time, became an important moment to witness firsthand the good practices of community-based prevention of intolerance, radicalism, and extremism.
The visit was attended by several key figures, including Kerri Kennedy, Associate General Secretary for International Programs at AFSC, and Abid Gulzar, Asia Regional Director. Their presence demonstrated significant international interest in local approaches to peacebuilding in Indonesia.
During the meeting, Wahyu Tanoto opened the session by presenting an overview of Mitra Wacana. He explained the organization’s history, vision and mission, and the various issues it focuses on. According to him, Mitra Wacana consistently works with grassroots communities using a participatory approach, targeting strategic issues such as the prevention of Trafficking in Persons (TIP), disaster management, child-friendly districts, and the prevention of intolerance, radicalism, and extremism (IRE).
AFSC showed particular interest in the issue of TIP. They delved deeper into the situation of human trafficking in Indonesia and the advocacy strategies employed by Mitra Wacana. This interest stems from AFSC’s engagement with similar issues at the regional level, opening up opportunities for broader collaboration in the future.
The discussion then continued with a presentation on the impact of the IRE prevention program in Baciro subdistrict by Ruliyanto, the Project Manager. In his presentation, Ruly emphasized that a community-based approach is the key to the program’s success. He explained that Mitra Wacana uses the APKM approach (Access, Participation, Control, and Benefits) to ensure that communities are not merely objects but also subjects in the change process.
“This program is designed by involving various elements, from women, youth, religious leaders, local authorities, to minority groups. All parties are given space to actively participate in creating an inclusive and peaceful environment,” Ruly explained.
Furthermore, he outlined that the strategies used were not only educational but also creative and collaborative. The program successfully reached approximately 82,000 people through a digital campaign involving 41 collaborators and producing 25 campaign content pieces. In addition, four radio talk shows were held, and 10 articles promoting peaceful narratives were published in collaboration with journalists.
Moreover, 38 content creator participants were trained to understand IRE issues and produce positive content as a counter-narrative to radicalism. At the community level, Baciro subdistrict now has an early detection guide distributed to 21 neighborhood units (RW) as a concrete step to prevent potential conflicts from an early stage.
Ruly emphasized that the program’s success demonstrates that peace can be built from small, participatory spaces. Interfaith dialogue, the creation of safe spaces, and non-violent approaches are the main foundations for strengthening community resilience.
“When communities are actively and inclusively engaged, they become not just beneficiaries, but also peace agents in their own environments,” he added.
This visit was not only an opportunity to share good practices but also opened possibilities for expanding programs to a larger scale. With AFSC’s support, the approach that has proven successful in Baciro is expected to be replicated in other regions of Indonesia.
Through cross-sectoral and cross-country collaboration, these efforts to weave peace from the grassroots are expected to create a sustainable impact while strengthening community social resilience amidst increasingly complex global challenges.
Ruliyanto
Source: This article was first published by Mitra Wacana and can be accessed at https://mitrawacana.or.id/merajut-perdamaian-dari-akar-rumput-afsc-dan-ykpi-apresiasi-dampak-program-mitra-wacana-di-baciro/
Reposted with permission from Mitra Wacana.