Be the catalyst of change! | Veronica Colondam | TEDxYouth@SPH
Veronica, the speaker argues that meaningful change hinges on asking the right questions about *who* to change, *what* to change, and *how* to dismantle the status quo. She uses case studies from Indonesia—showcasing educational barriers, water access issues, and child marriage—to demonstrate that investment in education and opportunity, rather than aid alone, fosters the ambition needed for self-driven transformation. The ultimate mandate is for individuals to discover their own life's mission and legacy, as demonstrated by Monaka and Christian. ## Speakers & Context - Unspecified speaker, addressing an audience following a "business school without further Ado" event. - Framing purpose: Emphasizing that initiating change requires knowing *what* to change, *who* to change, and *how* to break the status quo. - Humility: Speaker notes she is not a genius in public speaking, contrasting herself with a seemingly gifted speaker. ## Theses & Positions - Creating change necessitates knowing three things: *what* needs changing, *who* needs changing, and *how* to break the status quo. - The core principle is that asking the right question is the key to change. - Yap's thesis: If education is invested in wholeheartedly, it will lead to the establishment of "better welfare households." - The ultimate personal thesis: To create change, one must answer the existential questions to define their life's mission and desired legacy. - The mechanism of change is not the activity itself, but the opportunity that sparks ambition, which drives people to change for themselves. - A crucial caveat: One "cannot make them change if they did not want to change." ## Concepts & Definitions - **Catalyst for change:** The primary concept discussed, requiring strategic identification of change parameters. - **Drivers of change:** A global movement encompassing initiatives in Korea, Japan, and elsewhere, focused on proactively creating change. - **Yayasan:** The Indonesian word for foundation, used for the organization Yap. - **Ambition:** Described as a huge force that drives the desire to change. - **Legacy:** The deeply personal question concerning the kind of meaning and purpose one wants to leave behind. - **Status Quo:** The existing condition or state that needs to be broken to allow change. ## Mechanisms & Processes - **Yap's Intervention Process:** Utilizing microFinance (microloan/micro Capital) to stabilize the family income of underprivileged families, thereby enabling sustained investment in children's education. - **Transformation Trajectory (Monaka):** Moving from initial stigma/struggle (scavenger) $\rightarrow$ receiving opportunity (training/sponsorship) $\rightarrow$ achieving high-level success (Honda mechanic/owner). - **Entrepreneurship Importance:** Beyond employment (working for someone), entrepreneurship (selling something) is crucial for economic self-sufficiency. - **Thematic Progression:** The path to change involves first addressing basic needs (malnutrition, water access) before focusing on higher education or self-directed business. ## Timeline & Sequence - **1999:** Year Yap was founded. - **Past (Monaka):** Monaka was initially a scavenger collecting trash. - **Past (Training):** Monaka attended the first class at a press conference sponsored by HSBC. - **Three Months Later:** Monaka was seen waving at the speaker during the entrepreneurship training class sponsored by Microsoft. - **Honda Sponsorship:** Astra Honda offered five free spots for top students, leading to Monaka and others succeeding. - **Current Goal:** Monaka progresses to a stage where he aims to be both the owner of a Honda shop and an entrepreneur. ## Named Entities - **Yap:** The organization/foundation, established in 1999, premise rooted in education. - **Astra Honda:** Company that offered five free spots for top students to study further. - **Microsoft:** Sponsor of the entrepreneurship training class. - **Samsung:** Company that launched a repair program, which was utilized by Christian. - **Monaka:** Subject, originally a scavenger, who demonstrated remarkable transformation and upward mobility. - **Christian:** Case study subject; a babysitter/domestic helper who pursued further education. ## Tools, Tech & Products - **Ruma:** A mechanic/workshop for motorcycles, which Monaka found and subsequently joined. - **MicroFinance/microloan/micro Capital:** Financial means used by Yap to stabilize family finances to support education. - **Electronic Repair:** Specific skill learned through the Samsung program, utilized by Christian. ## Numbers & Data - **1 in 25:** Global rate of kids under five suffering from malnutrition (MAL). - **1 in 4:** Malnutrition rate in Indonesia (a rate four times worse than the global estimate). - **115 million:** Annual figure for UNESCO global student dropouts. - **4:** Denominator showing that only one student can attend college for every four who graduate from Primary School (SD). - **Half of registered marriages:** In Indonesia involve brides under 19 years old. - **2 kilometers:** Amount of forest destroyed every day (equivalent to 40 football fields). - **1%:** Percentage of Indonesians with access to pipe switch water services. - **2,000:** Number of young people in the entrepreneurship training class sponsored by Microsoft. - **5:** Number of free spots offered by Astra Honda. - **10 million / 15 million:** Estimated paid cost barrier to enter Honda training. - **2 classes a year:** Minimum number of classes Honda opens. - **50 / 100:** Maximum capacity limits (50 per class, 100 total yearly). - **5 million:** Prize money Monaka received from Astra. - **11 million:** Tuition cost Monaka needed to cover for his next educational step. - **4:** Years old the speaker’s young mother was when contemplating purpose. ## Examples & Cases - **Community Questioning:** Examples of questions to ask a poor community: "to whom can I start borrowing money?" or "what is it that I can sell today that make a difference?" - **Indonesian Crisis Summary:** Overarching case presenting issues: malnutrition (1 in 4), low college access (1 in 4 from SD), poor sanitation (1% access), and child marriage (half of marriages involving brides under 19). - **Monaka's Case Study:** Scavenger who found a Ruma mechanic, joined, and eventually became a highly successful student sponsored by Astra Honda, leading to a better life. - **Christian's Case Study:** Babysitter who successfully petitioned her boss to continue her education, graduating high school level, and subsequently securing a high-skilled job in electronics repair at Samsung. ## Tools, Tech & Products - **Ruma:** Mechanic/workshop for motorcycles. - **MicroFinance/microloan/micro Capital:** Financial mechanisms stabilizing income for educational investment. - **Samsung electronic repair:** Specific trade skill utilized in Christian’s case. ## References Cited - **UNESCO:** Source for citing the 115 million annual dropout rate. - **Mother Teresa:** Quoted regarding the severity of poverty lacking opportunity. - **Nelson Mandela:** Quoted regarding education being the most powerful weapon. - **HSBC:** Sponsor of the initial class Monaka attended. ## Trade-offs & Alternatives - **Education vs. Immediate Income:** The tension between attending school and needing to work in the market to support the family. - **Employment vs. Entrepreneurship:** The choice after education between being an employee or starting a business. ## Counterarguments & Caveats - The movement of "drivers of change" is global, seen in Korea and Japan, not limited to Indonesia. - The speaker qualifies Yap’s work: Yap is merely a *means to an end*; the true change is driven by internal will, not the finance itself. - The limitation of power: Humanity cannot force change upon people who are unwilling to change. ## Methodology - **Question-Based Framework:** The primary method for identifying solutions is asking probing questions to the community to uncover immediate needs (money, water, etc.). - **Macro-Data Framing:** Using broad, alarming statistics (UNESCO, 1% sanitation) to define the massive scope of the problem. - **Self-Reflection:** The personal methodology required for change involves interrogating one's own core beliefs by answering the four big life questions. ## Conclusions & Recommendations - The primary call to action is to investigate one's own purpose and potential impact by asking, *"What is the kind of Legacy you want to leave behind?"* - For systemic change in Indonesia, the focus must be on creating opportunity and empowering individuals through education, tackling issues from malnutrition to sanitation. - The final guiding principle is to "ask the right question at every corner." ## Implications & Consequences - Failure to intervene results in cycles of poverty, low educational attainment, and lack of basic sanitation infrastructure. - Providing opportunity moves people from mere hope to developing ambition—the crucial force for transformation. ## Open Questions - The speaker was unable to provide a definitive answer to the initial procedural question: *How* exactly does the change mechanism work? - The audience is left with the unaddressed personal challenge of articulating their own life's mission or purpose. ## Verbatim Moments - *"The kind of questions you want to ask yourself... to whom can I start borrowing money?"* - *"Only 1% of all Indonesians have access to pipe switch Services isn't that staggering to see that only 1% of us could actually have"* - *"There's no greater or the uh worse kind of poverty than those who who you know then those who do not have water or or sanitation or or money or shelter or or clothing then you know compared to those who do not have opportunity in life"* - *"Education is the most powerful weapon in which you can use to change the world"* - *"We cannot make them change if they did not want to change."* - *"God love me I love the world"* - *"what is the kind of Legacy you want to leave behind"* - *"I'm going to leave you behind with a few thinking with the story of this guy called monaka"*