Anita and the Action of Change from Simple Actions

With simple but meaningful actions, the young woman has proven that big change can start at home. 

One sunny afternoon, I decided to visit Anita in her village. I have heard a lot about Anita’s climate action, and would like to know more about the sustainability of her garden. When I arrived, I saw Anita busy cleaning her yard, picking ripe chili peppers and tomatoes.

“Good afternoon, Anita!” I greeted cheerfully while waving my hand.

“Good afternoon! Wow, om Nongki,” Anita replied with a big smile. She continued to pick red chili peppers that grew densely on one of the plants.

I approached and helped. “Your garden is very fertile! I’m curious, it’s been almost seven months since you started growing vegetables”.

Anita pauses for a moment and looks around her garden. “It’s amazing, om! Since we started planting, and when this plant is ready, we no longer need to buy vegetables. This is very helpful for the household budget. And now, I can even sell these surplus vegetables to the neighbors.”

As a young woman living in a village, she has a high awareness of the impact of climate change. Anita had the opportunity to take part in the Youth Adapt training.  During the training, Anita felt very inspired. She interacted with various participants who had fresh thoughts and ideas about climate change. The group discussion session provided an opportunity for Anita to share her views and experiences, as well as hear stories from others who also care about the environment.

“The training at that time opened my eyes to how important our actions as the young generation are,” said Anita. “I feel more prepared to contribute to the village and make a positive impact.”

Anita continued her experience when she participated in the training a year ago. At the end of the training, each participant was asked to design an action plan that could be implemented in their community. “As an individual action, I decided to use the yard land at home to grow vegetables as part of an effort to reduce the impact of climate change and increase family food security. Meanwhile, in the community action, my friends and I in the youth organization community chose the reforestation action at the location of the village spring, this is also our action to keep the spring area sustainable”. With the knowledge gained during the training, she is determined to create a vegetable garden that is not only beneficial for the family, but can also be an example for the surrounding community.

The Youth Adapt / Y-Adapt training is the starting point for Anita and many other youth to take concrete steps in protecting the environment, and provide hope for a better future.

She began to realize that his environment was undergoing significant changes, such as erratic weather, longer dry seasons, and heavy rains that often caused small floods around her. One of the impacts of the change is the shift in seasons that makes it difficult for farmers to determine the planting period as well as the harvest period for plants and this must affect the availability of foodstuffs. Seeing this condition, Anita feels the need to take concrete steps to reduce the adverse impact of climate change in her environment.

Anita takes advantage of the good availability of water in the village and a plot of yard land next to her house to grow vegetables such as spinach, kale, chili, and tomatoes. She chooses to use organic fertilizers from goat manure, as well as avoiding the use of chemical fertilizers that can damage the soil and pollute water. By doing this, Anita not only provides healthy food for her family, but also keeps the quality of the surrounding soil fertile.

She realized that growing vegetables in the yard of the house is one of the effective ways to adapt to climate change, while helping the surrounding environment stay green. For almost seven months, Anita’s family didn’t have to spend a budget to buy vegetables, and even her neighbors started buying fresh vegetables from their garden.

As a young woman in the village, she was able to lead herself to act responsibly. Being a leader does not start from big things, but grows from within yourself and starts from simple things. “I have indeed committed myself to consistently doing what I have planned and what I have started. Because the most difficult thing for me to face is myself. When there are enough activities, sometimes there is a sense of laziness and the temptation to postpone. But I tried to fight that. When you can overcome yourself, you feel freer and happier. It’s like something is missing when I haven’t done any activities in my yard.” Perseverance and good time management are the keys to her success. Every day, she manages her time between working in the yard garden, helping to take care of the house, youth community activities and as an early childhood teacher in the village. This discipline is what makes his garden continue to grow and give

As a young woman in the village, Anita feels that her own changes have become proof that everyone, especially young people, can play an important role in protecting the earth. She hopes that his action can inspire his peers to do the same. “If we start from our own yard, the impact will be felt everywhere, especially when more and more young women are doing this, it could be something big in the village,” added Anita.

I remember how happy I was when I picked the chili and tomatoes, also cut the kale for the first time. “Every time I see vegetables thriving, I feel like I’m making a change, not just for my family, but also for this village. Seeing neighbors start coming to buy vegetables, is a very precious moment for me. I am happy that they are starting to appreciate my efforts and realize that women can also create solutions to food problems even though

“I want all the women in this village to feel empowered,” I will continue with enthusiasm. “I want them to know that they can do something big, no matter how small the initial step starts from the yard.

“I hope, through the small garden that I made in this yard, more women will dare to take the initiative, especially young women in this village. We all have the potential to contribute to the environment and the economy, this vegetable garden is proof of that. And our actions to become empowered don’t have to be something big, it can also be from simple things like what I made. When more and more people do it, the action will definitely be big. If I can, then other women can too! If we can do more, we will become more empowered”