Tay Juhana Foundation Fosters Youth Voices through World Food Day Essay Competition

Stories can inspire people to innovate. Across hundreds of islands, distinct local traditions hold wisdom that unlocks the potential of suboptimal land and supports community livelihoods. We bring this spirit to the most anticipated annual Essay Competition, with the theme “Rooted in Tradition: Building an Inclusive and Resilient Indonesian Food System”.

Between September and October 2026, we received more than 400 entries across three themes, aimed at fostering innovation around three subthemes: innovation based on local knowledge and tradition, women’s role in the food system, and sustainable agriculture and climate resilience on suboptimal land.

These stories connect isolated regional solutions into a solid blueprint for sustainable agriculture. Picking the winners wasn't easy, since each offers an original yet insightful exploration of how suboptimal land management is part of an urgent climate solution. 

Let's get to know the three winning pieces that we think are worth your time. 

1st Winner: “Seed Guardians of the Fields: Reclaiming Food Sovereignty in Gorontalo through the Hands of Women” by Rahman Mohamad

For Rahman, women working on Gorontalo’s corn farms in Boalemo and North Gorontalo are often known as keepers of seed-selection knowledge. These women help cultivate and preserve stress-tolerant local varieties (such as binthe kiki and momala, Gorontalo's local purple corn) that adapt well to the local environment, characterised by dry, acidic soils and unpredictable rainfall patterns, without requiring heavy chemical inputs,   yet they receive less recognition than their contributions deserve. 

His proposal, a Lumbung Benih Perempuan (Women’s Seed Granary), is a village-level institution that would produce and store local seed, give women a formal voice in local forums that decide on seed and land, and empower them to apply their knowledge to planting and harvesting their own land. 

2nd Winner: “Sakai Young Generation’s Strategy in Preserving Traditional Food Mengalo in the Era of Instant Culinary.” by Muhammad Faiz Iqbal 

Faiz raised an interesting point about how knowledge once passed down orally by elderly women needs to be converted into digital and symbolic capital. He examined the preservation of mengalo, a traditional Sakai food made from wild cassava, which is threatened by the conversion of customary forests into non-food and industrial plantations, and can reduce the risk of the community losing its food supply if access to forest resources is disrupted. Modernising mengalo counters the growing dominance of commercial instant foods in daily consumption, protecting local food sovereignty and preventing the loss of local wisdom. The plant's potential is remarkable: high-value commercial products such as gluten-free flour, biscuits, and pastries can elevate its economic worth, boost local MSMEs (UMKM), and open broader commercial markets. 

3rd Winner: “From Ammonia Odour to Black Gold: Bokashi Innovation and Vocational Education Transformation for the Future of Food” by Merisa Yuliani

From Bawen, Central Java, Merisa shared how her school turned broiler chicken waste into bokashi fertiliser through a project-based, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics)-integrated learning project with her Grade XI class of 31 students. Wasn't it remarkable? She framed it as reviving the traditional principle of returning to the soil what is taken from it, in response to soil degradation from heavy synthetic fertilizer use. Through fieldwork, the student learned about fermentation temperature care and a 14-day process that turned the smelly waste into dark, crumbly fertilizer. The students then sold it at Pasar Pon Ambarawa and on social media, and by her account, they sold out all 1.2 tons and saved farmers roughly 35 to 40 per cent on fertiliser costs! She closes by reflecting on women’s leadership in agricultural education and on food innovation that starts from local tradition and waste!

It was a great session meeting with them virtually during the winners' announcement through our Instagram. Watch the replay in case you missed it.  

Did we mention that we also chose three sub-theme winners? Here are our winners for each sub-themes:

• Local Knowledge and Tradition-Based Innovation: Naila Jasmine, with her essay entitled “Rooted in Tradition, or Just a Slogan?”

• Women’s Roles in the Food System: Diandra Jasmine Fasabrina, with her essay entitled “20 Women, 3 Shrimp Paste Makers: Going Home Does Not Mean Starting from Zero”

• Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Resilience on Suboptimal Lands: Fidela Septea Puspitasari, with her essay entitled “AWAS (Adaptive Wetland Agriculture System): Integrating Three Layers of Water Management Based on Ecological Characteristics to Address Water Quantity and Quality Crises and Advance Sustainable Agriculture on Suboptimal Lands”

Beyond the Competition

At Tay Juhana Foundation, we are committed to continuing this engagement because this competition is not the end, but the start of further collective effort toward a resilient local food system on suboptimal land. Follow our updates and work on Instagram and LinkedIn!