VII Inter-Faith Youth Gathering in Pontianak, West Borneo
On April 9-12, 2026, the Wahid Foundation, in collaboration with Temasek Foundation, Hamoni in Action, SADAP, Gusdurian, and SAKA (Yayasan Suar Asa Katulistiwa) held a program to promote interreligious harmony and cooperation among people with different religious backgrounds in Pontianak, the capital of the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan.
It is expected that this program may result in actions in common to save the earth as everyone’s common home.
The theme of the gathering was Environmental Ethics and Religion. There were 15 speakers from the different religion groups, including Borneo local religions. Sr. Magdalena Paula SKYB, a local Carmelite sister and part of the Indonesian Carmelite NGO, was one of the speakers representing the Catholic community. Her presentation focused on the Laudato Si' principles.
There were 36 young leaders from different youth groups in Borneo also participating in the three-day program. They remained enthusiastically engaged in the discussion. There were also five representatives of deaf-mute youth community who are active in promoting interreligious understanding in Pontianak.
