Sutanpri is a passionate advocate for clean energy in education. He is the headmaster at the Muhammadiyah 4 Bengkulu High School in Indonesia, and has designed a curriculum to include climate change and renewable energy as part of the students’ learning journey. As a mathematician and teacher himself, he also teaches students how solar panels are built and work, so they can develop the technical skills to install and manage locally-led energy systems. He believes that it’s through the younger generations that we can make the most impactful change.
“Not everyone in my community is interested in learning about the climate crisis and the need to transition to cleaner energy sources – but the youth are! They understand that our future relies on that, and they have an amazing reach within our communities. When we share knowledge with the students, they bring it to their families and soon it becomes a topic of discussion in different community spaces. The new power is with the new generation!”
Sutanpri joined the climate movement after being inspired by the work of firemen helping people during repeated devastating floods in his country. Extreme weather has become stronger and more frequent in Indonesia, and he felt the urge to act.
Beyond the innovative school curriculum, Sutanpri also operates a solar power plant as part of the Clean Energy School, a project of 350 Indonesia, Climate Rangers Bengkulu and the NGO Kanopi. The initiative is part of RESolusi, a network of community-based renewable energy practitioners led by 350.org. Sutanpri joined the network to get skilled up on the energy transition and bring those learnings back to his fellow teachers and students.
This is a story from 350.org’s 2024 Annual Report