Vania Santoso

Social Entrepreneur and Programme Facilitator in East Java, Indonesia

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Featured as the 2017 Young Societal Leader, the Singapore Summit team published the profile of Ms. Vania Santoso as follows:

Ms. Vania Santoso, 25, is the Co-Founder of heySTARTIC which aims to raise awareness on climate action by providing access to exotic yet ethical fashion apparels through upcycling innovations.

heySTARTIC and the initiatives of the social enterprise has brought Ms Santoso the opportunity to be one of 150 participants recognised as the most dynamic global women and youth entrepreneurs, and to participate in the Seventh Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Silicon Valley in 2016, fully funded by the US State Department. Ms Santoso has also received other accolades including the 2014 Young Leaders for Indonesia Award from McKinsey & Company, 2015 Young Social Entrepreneur from Singapore International Foundation, and 2016 Indonesia Champion for Global Student Entrepreneur Award from Entrepreneurs’ Organisation.

Ms. Santoso has had 12 years of experience in youth leadership and community empowerment. Having begun social activism at a very young age, her community empowerment was acknowledged through Satyalencana Wirakarya, a medal bestowed by the Indonesian President when she was 19.

Ms. Santoso secured her first international funding of US$10,000 in 2007 by winning the first place in the Volvo and United Nations Environment Programme in Sweden. She was one of the 2009 Ashoka Young Changemakers and was awarded the 2010 Climate Champion by the British Council. Ms Santoso has dealt with United Nations agencies, including being the speaker for Green Jobs in Asia Regional Conference held by International Labour Organisation in 2012, advising the United Nations Population Fund between 2013 to 2015 as a part of the Youth Advisory Panel, serving the United Nations Children’s Fund as the Innovations Youth Engagement Officer from 2015 to 2016.

The story of Ms. Santoso’s journey was filmed in the Asians of the Year television programme broadcast by Channel NewsAsia.

Ms. Santoso is a valedictorian graduate from the Universitas Airlangga, Indonesia, with a Bachelor of Management.