Youth-Led Climate Urban Acupuncture: Microgrant-Based Interventions in Tangerang Regency

Abstract

Tangerang Regency, Indonesia, faces increasing climate pressures associated with rapid peri-urban development, including coastal flooding, ecosystem degradation, river pollution, waste accumulation, and limited green infrastructure. Conventional climate adaptation often prioritises large-scale infrastructure, while youth-led microgrant initiatives remain underexplored as spatially distributed interventions capable of collectively strengthening climate resilience. This study aims to examine youth-led microgrants as strategic ecological acupuncture interventions and develop a conceptual framework for spatially connected climate adaptation in Tangerang Regency. The objectives are to identify intervention typologies, analyse spatial relationships and potential ecological and social impacts, and establish connections between youth participation, local interventions, and cumulative climate resilience. A mixed-methods approach examines 12 Youth Climate Action Fund (YCAF) microgrant proposals supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies in Tangerang Regency. Spatial mapping and content analysis classify intervention typologies and identify environmental vulnerabilities across project locations. Comparative analysis examines ecological functions, youth participation, and potential spatial connections among interventions. Participatory observation and environmental, social, and institutional indicators will support subsequent field-based impact assessment. Preliminary findings identify six intervention domains: coastal rehabilitation, river restoration, circular waste management, green infrastructure, climate education, and digital environmental monitoring. These initiatives represent geographically distributed ecological acupuncture points addressing local environmental vulnerabilities. Their spatial distribution suggests opportunities for complementary ecological functions and collaboration among youth organisations. Youth participation potentially acts as a catalyst connecting individual interventions into broader community-based climate action. However, cumulative ecological and social impacts remain to be verified through project implementation and field evaluation. The study proposes a Youth-Led Climate Urban Acupuncture Framework integrating spatial intervention typologies, ecological contexts, and youth agency. This framework may inform decentralised climate adaptation, strengthen collaboration between local governments and youth communities, and guide future assessment of cumulative environmental impacts.