Youth as cultural mediators in ecological literacy: A moronene-based participatory campaign in a post-artisanal and small-scale gold mining community

Basri Basri (Department of Public Health, Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan Makassar, Makassar, South Sulawesi 90234)
Masayuki Sakakibara (Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto, 603-8047)
Hendra Prasetia (Research Center for Mining Technology, Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional, Central Jakarta, Special Capital Region of Jakarta 10340)
La Sahara (Department of Physics Education, Universitas Halu Oleo, Kendari, South East Sulawesi 93561)
Chitra Dewi (Department of Public Health, Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan Makassar, Makassar, South Sulawesi 90234)
Nanang Rahmadani (Department of Dental Health, Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan Amanah Makassar, Makassar, South Sulawesi 90231)

Interaction, Community Engagement, and Social Environment
Vol. 4 No. 1: (July) 2026

Background: Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has caused river pollution, deforestation, ecological disruption, and weakened the intergenerational transmission of Moronene ecological knowledge. This study examines how SEPAKAT, a local youth organization, designed, implemented, and experienced a Moronene-based ecological literacy campaign to improve ecological knowledge, strengthen youth-mediated intergenerational knowledge transfer, and identify enabling factors, constraints, and practical implications for post-ASGM recovery. Methods: The study used participatory action research and an embedded mixed-methods design. The proposed campaign model was validated through contextual/content validation with local stakeholders, process validation through triangulation of interviews, focus group discussions, observations, campaign documents, and participation records, and outcome validation using a one-group pretest–posttest design involving 50 participants. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired-sample t-tests, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically and integrated through triangulation. Findings: The campaign was implemented in four sequential phases, with Story Space and workshops receiving the largest time allocation (34%), underscoring the central role of intergenerational dialogue and collaborative learning. Overall ecological knowledge increased significantly from 2.67 ± 0.61 to 4.05 ± 0.49 (mean difference = 1.38; 51.7%; t = 9.57; p < 0.001). Youth mediation also improved significantly, particularly in translating Moronene ecological knowledge into educational media (mean difference = 1.58; 59.8%; t = 10.08; p < 0.001). The strongest enabling factors were the cultural legitimacy of Moronene values (4.42 ± 0.51; 88%) and SEPAKAT’s leadership (4.28 ± 0.56; 84%), while limited resources and logistical challenges constrained implementation. Conclusion: Youth-led, culturally grounded ecological literacy can strengthen environmental learning, ecological recovery, and intergenerational continuity in post-ASGM communities, while positioning youth as active cultural and environmental mediators. Novelty/Originality: This study demonstrates how youth-led intergenerational co-production can operationalize Indigenous ecological knowledge within a structured ecological literacy model in a post-extractive setting.