The Coastal Community Conference (CCC), held alongside the gathering of Cultural and Artistic Responses to the Environmental Crisis (CAREC) Cycle IV fellows, was more than a convening. It served as a shared space for a broader network of artists, activists, and collectives—both from across Indonesia and the Global South. Over the course of several days, the gathering unfolded as a slow and intentional weaving of cultural practice, climate wisdom, and community solidarity. Participants brought with them ancestral knowledge, creative resistance, and lived experience from the frontlines of ecological and social transformation.

Cendekia Iklim Indonesia joined the CCC not to deliver a keynote, but to create space. On May 9, we facilitated a matchmaking session guided by the elements—land, water and living creatures—inviting participants to connect not by institution or discipline, but by shared elements
of nature.

Participants chose the element they felt most aligned with. Within these groups, they shared the heart of their work: from agroecology and marine conservation to ancestral craft, food sovereignty, youth arts, and community-led education. As stories unfolded, the session transformed into an intuitive space of recognition—where alignment emerged not from formal proposals, but from shared values and lived experience

This method reflects Cendekia Iklim’s approach to regenerative systems change: one grounded in relationships, not transactions. By creating a space guided by ecological energies and cultural resonance, rather than institutional categories, we saw how meaningful collaborations begin—not with predetermined outcomes, but through genuine connection and collective intent.

Though softly structured, the session led to meaningful developments. Several cross-island project exchanges were initiated between youth collectives and food networks. Participants expressed interest in co-developing ecologically grounded resource maps. Artists began discussions around contributing to community-based climate literacy initiatives. There was also a clear demand for continued, trust-based space to nurture these relationships further.

The Coastal Community Conference (CCC) was co-created by Arka Kinari, Yayasan Lintas Batas Foundation, and the Prince Claus Fund as a space of encounter between Indonesian grassroots practitioners and global cultural workers engaged in environmental justice. Among the key voices shaping the gathering was Nova Ruth, co-founder of Arka Kinari, whose long-standing work at the intersection of music, maritime culture, and ecological resistance infused the program with a deep sense of place, movement, and memory. Her presence embodied the conference’s broader commitment to cultural navigation, Indigenous knowledge systems, and inter-island solidarity.

The CAREC Cycle IV fellows brought a rich transnational dimension to the exchange, forming an interdisciplinary cohort of artists from diverse countries across the Global South. Their practices, deeply rooted in place and justice, focused on climate resilience, decolonial critique, and creative care, broadening the collective reflection on environmental and cultural futures through their varied expertise spanning visual arts, community activism, environmental research, and cultural production.

From Indonesia, a diverse group of community leaders shared locally grounded strategies for adaptation, cultural preservation, and environmental organizing. Working across islands and disciplines, these leaders collectively strengthened ecological and cultural resilience within their communities.

Complementing this dynamic, a vibrant team of facilitators and catalyzers shaped the week’s rhythm and relational atmosphere. Through storytelling, music, journalism, and collective processes, they held space and fostered a tone of deep reflection, creativity, and attentive listening that sustained the entire program.

Throughout the conference, learning didn’t just happen in workshops or roundtables. It emerged during shared meals, long boat rides, informal walks, and storytelling circles. These moments reflected the ethos of CCC: that transformation requires more than information—it requires connection, humility, and time.

What happens when artists, climate activists, and community leaders from across the archipelago—and the Global South—gather not to talk about sustainability, but to live it together?

At the Coastal Community Conference 2025 in Labuan Bajo, we didn’t meet in breakout rooms—we met through shared meals and quiet conversations by the sea.

Cendekia Iklim Indonesia facilitated a matchmaking session unlike any other—one rooted in the elements of earth, land, and living creatures. Participants connected not by titles, but by values. The result: new collaborations, resource-sharing, and a reaffirmed belief that climate action begins not with policy, but with relationship.

We’ve written about what unfolded—and what it revealed.