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Heritage foundation promotes traditional attire among young Indonesians
A new foundation has launched an inaugural campaign urging young Indonesians to adopt the traditional dress of the country's diverse cultural heritage.
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Performers present a medley of traditional dances during an event by the Indonesian Cultural Heritage (WBI) Foundation on March 23, 2022, which launched a series of campaigns promoting Indonesia's diverse traditional cultures (The Jakarta Post/Handout)
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n a bid to promote traditional culture, the newly formed Indonesian Cultural Heritage (WBI) Foundation has kicked off a series of campaigns targeting the younger generation.
Launched late last week, the initial campaign promotes the adoption of traditional attire from across the archipelago's diverse cultures among young Indonesians.
"We must start and show young people that traditional dress can be interesting and trendy," Yanti Airlangga, the chair of the foundation’s advisory board, said during the event.
Yanti said it was necessary to start campaigning for wearing the traditional dress of the country’s different ethnic groups, as more and more people were opting for the convenience of modern fashion.
"It is now more difficult to find events where wearing traditional costume is mandatory," she added.
To gain traction for its campaign, the foundation has enlisted television personality and YouTube sensation Raffi Ahmad as the campaign ambassador.
"As [a member] of the younger generation, I hope I can contribute to the effort to preserve Indonesian culture, both at home and abroad, through creative content on our platform," Raffi said during the event.
Raffi's production house, Rans, has a number of YouTube channels that have garnered millions of views, making him one of the most influential personalities for social media marketing strategies.
The WBI Foundation has also launched a number of initiatives to promote Indonesian culture at home and abroad, including by helping small and medium enterprises sell their handcrafted products online and by holding exhibitions overseas that showcase traditional crafts.
"There's just so much of our national heritage that many people don't know about. Through WBI, I hope that more of our local culture gains more recognition," said founding member Emmanuel Wanandi.
The WBI Foundation was founded on Nov. 24, 2021 by a number of public figures, including Pandu Sjahrir, Anindya Bakrie and Liliana Tanoesoedibjo.
