Present young people with an opportunity, or a challenge, and one can see just how well they can rise to the occasion. That is certainly the case for the students who took part in the latest Jakarta Scholars Symposium (JSS), an independent organisation that provides a platform for students to showcase and present their research, innovations and ideas for a better world.
This year’s Jakarta Scholars Symposium took place on 28 May 2025 at Soehanna Hall, The Energy Building – SCBD. The forum featured presentations by 11 students from a variety of schools across the city, selected by the JSS team. This year’s theme was ‘Advocacy in Action’, inviting the students to explore solutions to a specific challenge faced by society. Topics ranged from social sciences, waste management, education, culture, to the development of cities.
The symposium provides a space for inquisitive and inspired young scholars to share their ideas on stage through a TED-talk style presentation. These ideas aren’t pipe dreams, but probable solutions that the students believe can fix real world problems.
One speaker, Walter Kusuma, Grade 11, brought Jakarta’s waste crisis into the spotlight with his research project, “After the Bin.” His presentation outlined how the city’s poor waste management infrastructure was leading to a total loss of ‘value’, with 8,600 tonnes of trash a day heading to Bantar Gebang. A challenge at this scale has left many policy-makers at a loss, but for Walter, the solutions are within arm’s reach, seeing how businesses can play an active role in this growing and impending crisis.
Walter identified issues with the current waste management system (…or lack thereof), such as contamination of recyclables, environmental pollution, and increased of separation once at landfills. His proposed solution to address these issues would be to implement waste sorting on-site at individual businesses. This would not only reduce waste-to-landfill, but also improve efficiencies for the growing recycling and upcycling industries, returning potential value back to items that were once considered valueless.
Walter highlighted the misconception that proper waste management was simply a cost, emphasising its potential of being an economic driver through both cost-saving and value creation, going beyond the simple environmental benefits.
Impressively, Walter’s “After the Bin” project had a game plan, with proposals due to be sent to selected commercial malls in Jakarta, suggesting tenant waste management, redesigned trash bins for visitors, on-site sorting and composting and more. Versed in the Sustainable Development Goals, Walter envisioned a future where waste no longer a burden, but a resource, and understood the need to integrate private sector and everyday society into the solution.
This impressive presentation, which was complemented by a display and stall, was but one example of the bright ideas showcased at Jakarta Scholars Symposium 2025. Another student, Vincent Tristan Tjoa, presented his AgriSync project, a technological solution to water preservation in agricultural irrigation systems; or Kayson Sunjoto, who addressed domestic waste water issues by designing a rain water system utilised solely for one of the biggest uses at the home: flushing.
Other students included Justin Tjitra, Gracelyn Atmadja, Ronald Tranggono, Amanda Widjanarko, Kristopher Gondokusumo, Alvernia Liu, Misha Oen, and Kay Hartono, who raised topics around biofuels, social issues, educational reform, cultural studies, and urban development.
The Jakarta Scholars Symposium is a brilliant reminder never to overlook young minds, who in many ways are more passionate, creative and eager to solve problems in the world. Now in its fourth year, the symposium will hopefully see a growth in popularity as a platform that celebrates future changemakers and encourages positive, global citizens.
