Student of the Occupational Therapy Study Program, Vocational Education Program, Universitas Indonesia, Darren Benardy won Second Place in the English Story Telling and Speech Contest (ESSCo) 2024 for the English Speech category. On that occasion, Darren brought up environmental issues, especially related to climate change that is happening very quickly, titled “WAKE UP!”.
“I voiced the various challenges that the world will face due to extreme climate change in the future. Everyone needs to realize the urgency of the environment in which we live. Through this speech, I present a solution, namely 3D (Decarbonize, Digitalize, and Decentralize),” said Darren.
He further said that 3D efforts can be done through various things. For example, the use of renewable energy sources and reducing carbon-based fuels, utilizing technology that can be improved to realize the potential of digitalization, and reducing dependence on several large power plants.
“Currently, communities that have a high population and awareness of change are dominated by the younger generation. So, I emphasize again that as part of the youth who are interested in advocating for a better change for our world, we must move together towards change. Bringing change can start from small things. Being aware of the existence of people who have the same interests as us will certainly provide more encouragement to support the change,” said Darren.
The competition consists of two rounds, namely the preliminary round and the final round. In the preliminary round, the competition process is in the form of collecting video speeches based on themes and sub-themes that have been determined by the committee. For approximately two weeks, Darren prepared the script that would be used for the uploaded video speech.
After successfully qualifying for the final round with four other participants, Darren raised a social topic titled “The Idea of Communal Responsibility as the Youths.” The topic reflects the environmental issue that Darren previously brought up in the preliminary round, namely the need for significant change.
Director of UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, said that the victory announced on January 5, is a reflection of the young generation who are trying to bring about positive changes. “The environmental and social issues brought by Darren can be a reflection for us that small changes will have a big impact on the world. Hopefully, this achievement will be the first step for Darren and other young generations to voice various positive changes and have an impact on the future of the world,” said Padang.
