Raising Community Participation in Sustainability Project: A Study on Communication Strategy of Permayouth in Action Program in Timor-Leste

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-573-7_24How to use a DOI?

Keywords

communication for social development; climate action; developing-countries; ecosystem restoration; youth participation

Abstract

Timor-Leste is one of the countries affected by climate change and vulnerable to natural disasters such as droughts and soil erosion. Some areas in the country also still face limited access to water resources. This situation encourages the involvement of non-governmental organizations like PERMATIL, which implements various efforts such as water and soil conservation through the Permayouth in Action program. However, local community participation in this program is still considered low. Using an explanatory case study method, this research aims to examine the communication strategies used by PERMATIL in promoting community participation from the perspectives of the Communication for Social Development. Data collection techniques included interviews, FGDs, and field observations. The results show that the communication strategies implemented by PERMATIL to increase community participation in Timor-Leste encompass information, education, and communication. The finding shows that information that is more critically related to the root problem of climate change is needed to complete the practical knowledge that the society has. Education that is more consistent and structured is needed to encourage a more sustainable effect on the society. Face-to-face communication is still the main communication model that is effective, while integrating with culture and inducing word of mouth are also the keys to creating the discussion on climate action amongst youth.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Ernesto Guevara Carceres
AU  - Maria Advenita Gita Elmada
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/30
TI  - Raising Community Participation in Sustainability Project: A Study on Communication Strategy of Permayouth in Action Program in Timor-Leste
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Communication and New Media Studies (COMNEWS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 241
EP  - 252
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-573-7_24
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-573-7_24
ID  - Carceres2026
ER  -