A total of 30 young leaders, known as Sobat Perdamaian, aged 18–25, have successfully completed the GerakDampak Academy 2025 Intensive Course held by Indika Foundation in Jakarta from 29 October to 2 November 2025.

The participants were selected from 673 applicants representing 31 provinces across Indonesia, from Aceh to Papua.

This year marks the inaugural launch of GerakDampak Academy, a program designed to empower young people with the skills, motivation, and opportunities to become agents of change promoting peace and tolerance at both local and national levels. The program is based on the HARMONI curriculum, developed by Indika Foundation to prepare youth to become good global citizens.

GerakDampak Academy comprises three main stages: Online Bootcamp, Intensive Course, and Aksi Nyata(Real Action). The program combines online training, experiential learning, sustainable individual project implementation, and mentorship from professional practitioners.

“Indika Foundation believes that every young person has the potential to create change. Through GerakDampak Academy, we aim to create a learning space that nurtures empathy, leadership, and collaboration so they can contribute meaningfully to a peaceful Indonesia,” said Aprida Sondang, Managing Director of Indika Foundation.

Over the five-day training, participants explored learning and reflective sessions focused on three leadership pillars: Lead Self, Lead Others, and Lead Change. The approach aims to strengthen self-awareness, collaborative leadership, and the capacity to create positive change in their communities.

As part of the experiential learning component, participants visited three houses of worship in Kampung Sawah, Bekasi—Pasundan Christian Church, St. Servatius Catholic Church, and Pesantren Singgah Aksara Pinggir—to deepen interfaith understanding and dialogue.

During the visit, participants engaged directly with religious leaders and held interfaith discussions with local youth.

“I hope this visit brings messages of peace that you can feel, see, and most importantly take back to your communities and share with as many people as possible,” said Bambang, representative of St. Servatius Catholic Church.

In addition to field visits, participants took part in interactive and reflective sessions led by professional facilitators with long-standing experience in leadership and peacebuilding.

“Sustainable change begins with self-awareness and the willingness to learn. Through the HARMONI curriculum, we aim to cultivate young leaders who are not only smart and courageous, but also empathetic and able to embrace differences as a shared strength,” said William Cahyawan, Program and Impact Manager at Indika Foundation.

Following the Intensive Course, the 30 young leaders have entered the Aksi Nyata phase, where they are implementing social projects designed to create positive and lasting impact in their respective communities.