In an afternoon at WRI Indonesia, WRI Indonesia staff got a chance to spend a brief yet insightful lunch time with one of our board members, Prof Kuntoro Mangkusubroto. Prof Mangkusubroto, or Pak Kun as people call him, is a respected figure who dedicated his years of life for the country. Now serving as a professor at Bandung Institute of Technology, he previously served as the head of President’s Delivery Unit for Development Monitoring and Oversight (UKP4), the chair the National Taskforce for Reduction of Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), the president of Indonesia’s state electricity company (PLN) and the minister of mines and energy.

In our office, Pak Kun delivered a lecture, but unlike any other lecture, his touched on various aspects of life and soft skills that are greatly needed in implementing our work to achieve sustainable development in Indonesia. He started his lecture by sharing his experience post Tsunami in Aceh during his tenure as the Ministerial Head of the national Post-Tsunami Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) for Aceh-Nias.

From his experience working with many stakeholders in Aceh, he emphasized the importance of serving and supporting our country with integrity. Without integrity, a variety of personal interests may take place and create conflicts. With personal interests being present, sustainable development will take a long way to achieve. Another lesson that Pak Kun shared with us is the needs to suit the way we communicate with different people, especially in Indonesia, a home to a rich diversity in terms of culture and race. By doing so, we try to respect the people we communicate with and this approach will lead to a better outcome.

Finally, Pak Kun encouraged WRI Indonesia staff to continue working for the betterment of Indonesia and the future generations with integrity and to start doing good now to avoid having regret later in life.

data WRI Indonesia staff with Prof. Kuntoro Mangkusubroto