“It is important for us to understand and know ourselves so that we can pursue our dreams and follow our hearts despite what other people say,” exclaimed Vania Santoso, a young eco-preneur who is known for her eco-fashion business named HeySTARTIC, before 50 youth and students gathered at the National Museum, Jakarta, on 29 October 2016. She also inspired them to always seek information and build a network that were relevant with their true passion.

Vania’s business convers empty sacks of cement into trendy, quality bags. “I never imagined myself as an eco-preneur. My passion is to transform waste into something valuable and useful, and turn out that my passion can be transformed into a green business that is not only good for the environment but also beneficial for marginalized communities who have been involved in this,” she said.

Vania was one of inspiring young speakers at the interactive discussion titled “The Future is Yours: Bridging the Gap of Work for Indonesian Youth”, which was organized by the ILO in conjunction with the commemoration of the 71th Anniversary of the United Nations. Other two inspiring speakers were Surya Sahetapy, a young disability advocate and Tendy Gunawan, the ILO’s programme officer for youth employment.

Surya shared his inspiring life story as the first person with disability employed by the Provincial Government of Jakarta under its first apprenticeship programme. Competed with other 500 applicants, Surya sent his essay about the general condition of deaf people in Jakarta. His essay also emphasized what the provincial government could do to develop and improve the educational system, particularly for deaf people.

One of the challenges for Surya was to be involved and understand the conversations and discussions around him. Without the assistance from a sign-language interpreter, he tried his best to read lips. “It was a struggle for me to keep up with my team, but I refused to give up. I then approached my supervisor to find solution,” he stated.

Since the provincial government had never employed people with disabilities, the officials were not aware about disability issues. A sign-language interpreter was then hired to assist Surya during the apprenticeship programme.

Both Vania and Surya reminded the participants that they would face challenges and hardships. “No matter what we have to stick with what we believe in and find supports that we need. For example by attending information sharing events like this and by continuously developing networks with people who have the same passion with us,” said Vania.

Meanwhile, for challenges faced by persons with disabilities, Surya stated that “it is important for all the disability organizations and others who care about creating an inclusive environment surrounding us to continue advocating the government and the public at large about disability issues.”

The ILO has had a long-standing commitment to promote decent work for youth. “This event is part of the ILO’s commitment and advocacy work to promote decent work for youth. Through exchanging experiences, challenges and hopes, the participating youth can be inspired to find their ways in smoothing their transition from school-to-work and in creating their own jobs through entrepreneurship,” concluded the ILO’s programme officer Tendy.