After a decade of supporting initiatives, the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Seeds for the Future grant competition awards up to US$15,000 to each of its 16 recipients to develop innovative projects this year.
fter a decade of supporting initiatives, the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Seeds for the Future grant competition awarded up to US$15,000 to each of its 16 recipients to develop innovative projects this year.
The grants, established in 2014 by the United States Mission to ASEAN, aim to support young leaders aged 18 to 35 from 11 different countries in developing projects focused on civic engagement, economic empowerment, social entrepreneurship, education or environmental issues.
"The program has been running for a decade. We have nearly 7,000 YSEALI alumni," Mission Chargé d'Affaires Kate Rebholz said during her opening remarks at the recent 2024 YSEALI Seeds showcase event in Ganara Art Space, Plaza Indonesia, in Central Jakarta.
One of the teams from Indonesia that received the grant created a project to educate children about preventing sexual violence, called Kakak Aman Indonesia (Safe Indonesian Siblings).
According to data from the Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, there were 18,175 cases of child violence, 10,932 of which were sexual violence cases, in 2023.
Given the high number of sexual violence cases against children, Hana Maulida and her two teammates developed an initiative to help children and preteens understand how to protect themselves from sexual violence.
The group launched learning modules that teach children about body parts that should not be touched or seen by others. It also encourages children to speak up if they feel unsafe by finding a safe place and telling a trusted adult about the uncomfortable experience.
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