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Tackling Tuberculosis Through Climate × Health Innovation

As a tropical country, Indonesia is highly vulnerable to climate-sensitive infectious diseases, including tuberculosis (TB). Caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria survive longer in humid air, heightening the risk of transmission. TB spreads easily through the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or even speaks, placing families and communities in danger.

Globally, an estimated 10 million people fall ill with TB each year, and 1.6 million die. Indonesia carries a significant portion of this global burden, ranking second-highest in the world, with nearly 1 million new cases and around 140,000 deaths annually. Behind these numbers are children missing school, families losing hope, and communities struggling with stigma.

As the world’s fourth most populated country, Indonesia faces a triple burden: poverty, dense neighborhoods, and climate shocks. These overlapping conditions create fertile ground for TB to spread and reinforce cycles of poverty and illness.

Raising the Issue at the AVPN Global Conference 2025

Picture – Faye Wongso, Founder and Chairperson of KUMPUL and KUMPUL Impact at The Lighthouse Fund: Catalyst for Climate × Health Innovation in Asia session. AVPN Global Conference 2025.

On 9 September 2025, KUMPUL Impact represented Indonesia at The Lighthouse Fund: Catalyst for Climate × Health Innovation in Asia, part of the AVPN Global Conference at Rosewood, Hong Kong SAR, China. Hosted by AVPN and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust (HKJCCT), with support from the Bayer Foundation, India Health Fund, and Prudence Foundation, the event announced KUMPUL Impact as one of the Lighthouse Fund grantees. This recognition places Indonesia’s tuberculosis challenge at the center of a larger conversation about climate and health in Asia.

The human cost of TB is deeply personal. Families confined to one-room houses with poor ventilation experience rapid transmission. A 15-year-old girl loses her school days due to stigma. Communities struggle not only with illness but also with despair, as fragile living conditions worsen under climate and demographic pressures. The fact that 40 percent of TB cases show no symptoms only deepens the urgency for solutions that extend beyond medicine.

Responding to these realities, KUMPUL Impact launched Climate Action for Resilient & Empowered Healthcare Staff (CARES). The program equips frontline workers to become Climate Health Champions, enhancing the Plataran Sehat platform with expert-led training and localized action plans. By embedding climate resilience into TB prevention and community health, CARES contributes directly to Indonesia’s roadmap to end TB by 2030.

At KUMPUL Impact, we believe resilient healthcare cannot stand apart from resilient communities. Community health centers (Puskesmas) can transform into resilience hubs, supported by stronger local foundations that enable both health systems and communities to withstand future health and climate shocks.

Learn more about the Lighthouse Fund here: AVPN – The Lighthouse Fund

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