26 January 2026 – I began this fellowship journey with a question rather than an answer. Coming from Indonesia, one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, I have long been troubled by the distance between environmental realities and public awareness. Climate change is already shaping livelihoods, ecosystems and futures, yet for many Indonesians it remains abstract or distant. My work in communications has always been driven by a simple but difficult question: how do we make climate change meaningful enough to inspire care and action?
When I first encountered the Club of Rome, it was unfamiliar territory. It appeared almost unexpectedly on my LinkedIn feed. What convinced me to apply was reading The Young Person’s Guide to Systems Change. It reframed systems change not as an unreachable ambition, but as something deeply human which is built through relationships, dialogue and networks of people willing to work across difference. I began to see how this way of thinking could help societies like mine navigate complexity without searching for simplistic solutions. That realisation led me to the Club of Rome: a platform of thought leaders united by a shared commitment to the long-term wellbeing of people and planet. A network that, as Dr Lebohang Liepollo Pheko once described it to me, may not always be like-minded, but is unmistakably like-hearted.
During the fellowship, I was entrusted with work that went beyond execution and into shared ownership. One of the earliest examples was the history article project. What began as an individual assignment evolved, through my proposal, into a larger collaborative effort spanning multiple essays, worked altogether with other 2025 fellows which are Martin Mbewe from Malawi and Yvonne Wambua from Kenya. My day-to-day work focused primarily on digital communications, particularly crafting social media copy and visual cards to translate complex ideas into engaging narratives. I also worked on member profile features, conducting in-depth interviews and producing articles that required careful listening and interpretation. Being invited to share my perspectives and seeing them reflected in final outputs strengthened my sense of responsibility and shifted my role from contributor to co-creator.
This learning was reinforced by the Club of Rome’s global nature and remote culture. Working across continents made difference tangible. To be honest, sometimes energising, sometimes challenging. Misunderstandings also occurred, even among communications professionals like us. The response was not avoidance, but more communication: listening carefully, repeating conversations and working patiently towards shared clarity. Trust was central to this culture.
This culture of trust extended beyond remote collaboration. Early in the fellowship, I was invited directly to Winterthur, Switzerland to take part in a communications workshop that brought together reflection, strategy, and collective learning. Being involved in shaping the communications direction for the upcoming fellowship year reinforced my sense of ownership and showed me how the Club of Rome approaches communication not as a fixed plan, but as an evolving, participatory process.
Much of my exposure to the Club of Rome’s intellectual depth came through the member profile features, where I interviewed long-standing members and contributors. These conversations transformed abstract ideas into lived perspectives. Engaging with thinkers such as Jorgen Randers, Lebohang Liepollo Pheko and Ken Alabi revealed that systems change is rarely driven by certainty, but by dialogue held in humility and creative tension. What connected these perspectives was not agreement, but openness to the understanding that progress emerges through listening across difference. These encounters reminded me that the Club of Rome is not just a repository of ideas, but a living network where global thinking remains grounded in human realities.
Beyond the work itself, one of the most meaningful outcomes of this fellowship has been the relationships it fostered. This experience brought together three of us — me, Martin and Yvonne — into a shared space of learning and collaboration. Connecting with fellows with previous cohorts as well revealed what I now see as the beginnings of a growing fellows’ family. Initiatives such as the Systems Change Communications Network, which has grown into a community of over 800 early-career communicators, reflect this spirit of continuity and co-creation.
In the end, this fellowship did not give me a definitive answer to my original question. Instead, it helped me realise that the question itself was incomplete — because there are no single answer and no single path to reach it. What it offered instead was a way forward, built through relationships, dialogue, and shared responsibility. I learned that making people care about climate change is not about delivering the right message, but about creating the conditions in which understanding, trust, and action can grow. That is the true essence of the Club of Rome Communications Fellowship. I look forward to seeing this community grow, and I warmly invite you to take part in it by becoming a Communications Fellow in the 2026 cohort.
The application period for the 2026 Communications Fellowship with the Club of Rome is now open until 20 February 2026. Learn more and apply here: https://www.clubofrome.org/vacancy/communications-fellowship-2026/
