About Us
Resilience Development Initiative (RDI) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting sustainable development and resilience-building efforts in communities facing challenges such as disasters, climate change, and social vulnerabilities. RDI collaborates with various stakeholders, including government agencies, NGOs, academic institutions, and community organizations, to design and implement innovative solutions for building resilience and mitigating risks.
At the core of RDI’s approach is the integration of research, capacity-building, and community engagement to address complex issues related to disaster management, climate adaptation, and sustainable development. The organization emphasizes the importance of local knowledge and community involvement in developing effective strategies that are tailored to specific regional needs.
RDI’s initiatives cover a wide range of areas, including disaster risk reduction, sustainable livelihoods, environmental conservation, and technology-driven solutions. Through partnerships with local and international entities, RDI strives to foster a collaborative network of stakeholders committed to enhancing resilience and ensuring the well-being of vulnerable communities.
The organization’s efforts extend beyond immediate response and recovery, emphasizing long-term planning and development to create lasting and sustainable change. By harnessing the collective expertise and resources of its partners, RDI aims to empower communities to withstand and recover from various challenges, fostering a more resilient and adaptive future for the people and environments they serve.
The year 2023 marks 17 years of RDI as an established think tank in Southeast Asia. The core mission of RDI is research–therefore, RDI promotes research based on the needs and opportunities. We aim to strengthen our research on resilience studies and sustainable development at the local and regional levels. This year, we have conducted various research and activities nationally and internationally. In Indonesia, we have covered East Nusa Tenggara, West Java, North Sumatera, and others. We have also reached ASEAN countries such as Malaysia, Cambodia, and the Philippines.
This year, RDI plans to strengthen the partnership across global think tanks and institutions in Southeast Asia. We strive to work closely with other parties to be involved in more interdisciplinary studies that are crucial to further improve resilience in extreme adversity as well as for the prevalence of evidence-based policymaking. RDI aims to spread out more impacts to broader communities across countries through our research and consultancy in the implication of resilience and sustainable development goals.
One of our highlights this year is the collaboration between RDI and ASEAN Secretariat. We have successfully commenced a Joint Study on Urbanisation, People Mobility, and Inclusive Development across the Urban-Rural Continuum in ASEAN. At the local level, we have also implemented the Urban Living Labs (ULL) project, “Making Displacement Safer: Building Resilience of Urban Displaced”. It is funded by the Global Network of Civil Society Organisations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR) and USAID. RDI has participated in more than 30 collaborative on-going projects since 2022 until now, including research and consultancy program in collaborations with several global organisations, including ASEAN Secretariat, WVI, WRI, USAID, GNDR, Tetra Tech, Deloitte, ADB, UNICEF, and many more.
We are hopeful that the research project and consultancy work we have undertaken in the past years will make valuable contributions to the development and resilience of communities in Indonesia and the surrounding region. Additionally, we eagerly anticipate exploring collaborative partnerships with various stakeholders, including government institutions, CSOs, think-tanks, and the private sector, to further enhance sustainability and development initiatives both locally and globally.
The RDI logo consists of blue and yellow colors, representing its core values and mission. The blue color symbolizes stability, trust, and resilience, reflecting RDI’s commitment to fostering strong and enduring solutions. Blue also represents the organization’s focus on environmental conservation and sustainable development.
The yellow color, depicted as the fire of a torch, signifies hope, innovation, and empowerment. It represents RDI’s dedication to igniting positive change and empowering communities to overcome challenges and thrive in the face of adversity.
Together, the blue and yellow colors in the RDI logo symbolize the harmonious blend of stability and hope, resilience and innovation, as the organization works towards building a sustainable and resilient future for vulnerable communities and the environment.
Inspiration, innovation, and opportunities.
To be a leading institute in research on sustainable development and resilience studies in Indonesia and Southeast Asia.
RDI contributes to the body of knowledge on development and resilience research studies.
RDI has carried out a number of research projects continuously in several locations in Southeast Asia, among others:
- Thailand (Bangkok)
- Vietnam (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh)
- Myanmar (Phnom Penh)
- Singapore (Singapore)
- Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur)
- Cambodia (Phnom Penh, Siem Reap)
- the Philippines (Manila, Los Banos, Cebu)
- Indonesia (Ace, Karo, Padang, Palembang, Pontianak, Palangkaraya, Bandung, Indramayu, Semarang, Malang, Surabaya, Blitar, Kediri, Palu, NTT, Lombok, Papua, DKI Jakarta, D.I Yogyakarta, Makassar, Jayapura)
Resilience Development Initiative (RDI) is a global think tank that focuses on and contributes to the body of knowledge on resilience and sustainable development.