Description: Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah Director, Hening Parlan, attends and delivers remarks during the reflection session of the JISRA Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah Program in Pontianak, October 8, 2025.
In a warm and reflective atmosphere, Hening Parlan, Director of Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah, delivered five key messages to program implementers during the Reflection, Monitoring, and Evaluation Meeting of the JISRA Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah Program held in Pontianak on October 8, 2025. The meeting was attended by representatives from four implementing regions — Pontianak, Ternate, Surakarta, and Banyuwangi — which since 2021 have been part of an interfaith movement for environmental preservation.
In her remarks, Hening urged participants to strengthen their commitment to cadre development. She emphasized that leadership regeneration must be carried out culturally to produce resilient and high-integrity cadres who can continue the movement at various levels within Muhammadiyah and ‘Aisyiyah. “I always remember the message from Pak Abdul Mu’ti, Secretary-General of the Central Board of Muhammadiyah: carry out cultural cadre development,” she said.
Hening also highlighted the importance of conducting work that creates broad and sustainable impact. She cited how Eco Bhinneka teams in the field have developed tangible initiatives — from interfaith dialogues to environmental actions such as river cleaning, coastal cleanups, tree planting, and various community trainings. “When I attended the JISRA Reflection Meeting in Kenya, I heard many stories about interfaith dialogues, but none were as extensive and sustainable as the work carried out by Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah teams in Indonesia,” she said proudly.
Furthermore, Hening reminded that expanding the scope of work must go hand in hand with the ability to build strong and compelling narratives. For her, narratives are not merely tools of communication but ways of seeing reality through a “small lens” — one that allows clarity and humanity. “Too often we use the organization’s ‘big lens’ and forget to notice the small things right in front of us. Yet by using a small lens, we can truly capture the real meaning,” she explained. Narratives that stay close to real experiences, she added, help make Eco Bhinneka’s work more relatable and easier to sustain.
Keterangan: Group photo of all JISRA Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah program implementers during the Reflection, Monitoring, and Evaluation Meeting in Pontianak, October 8, 2025.
The fourth message was the importance of appreciating small victories. For Hening, true success is measured by the process and the tangible changes that grow within communities. She pointed to experiences from various regions where Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah and interfaith youth have built solidarity among local residents in program areas. “Small victories are the real victories,” she said.
Lastly, Hening underscored the need to keep innovating. Innovation, she said, does not always have to be grand; it often begins with small steps that spark new learning and future growth. She mentioned the experience of program implementers taking part in outcome harvesting training during the monitoring and evaluation process as an example of how small innovations can offer valuable lessons for the organization. “From one small step to two, three, and so on,” she remarked.
Concluding her reflection, Hening expressed hope that this spirit would become a foundation for new initiatives. “I hope this doesn’t end today, but becomes the stepping stone for friends to start again. Please, continue building Eco Bhinneka Muhammadiyah in other regions across Indonesia,” she said.
