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In 2023, AEER’s Coordinator recognised a pivotal moment for the organisation. With deep experience in community engagement, research, advocacy and campaigning, he had built strong external credibility. Yet to sustain and scale impact, AEER needed stronger internal Foundations.
He sought support to sharpen his leadership and management skills, strengthen team cohesion, and move beyond a project-by-project approach toward building a resilient institution capable of long-term impact.
The work
The consultancy began in August 2023 and ran through April 2024. It combined:
● Facilitated group sessions to develop a three-year business plan and budget.
● A clear, aligned fundraising strategy.
● Individual leadership coaching for the Coordinator
This first phase created strategic clarity and surfaced deeper organisational development needs. Those insights shaped a second phase of support (February 2024–January 2025), focused on strengthening AEER’s operational systems, staff culture, recruitment and retention, governance, long-term financial sustainability and included leadership team coaching.
Strategic organisational outcomes
AEER’s most profound shift has been moving from short-term project delivery to a systemic, Institution-building approach and building the organisational culture. One of the key learnings has been the “awareness that we need to build our institution. An institution is not a single person.” Today, leadership and staff think beyond individual projects. They consider sustainability, systems, and organisational continuity.
Leadership & Team Development
● A defined leadership team with agreed working practices
● Greater internal cooperation and transparency
● More open and strategic discussions across the team
● Leadership training now offered to staff.
● Growing recognition of the importance of stability and a leadership pipeline
Governance & Board Engagement
Targeted work on governance has led to:
● Increased board engagement
● Stronger strategic support from board members
● Clearer recognition of the need for continued governance strengthening.
While progress is evident, AEER remains committed to further developing governance structures as part of its institutional maturity.
Recruitment, induction and retention
Over the past 12 months, AEER has significantly strengthened its recruitment and onboarding Systems. Improved hiring processes, including more strategic use of social media, have enabled the
organisation to attract more experienced and technically skilled staff. Induction processes are now more structured, with greater emphasis on giving new staff time and space to learn.
The Coordinator reflected:
“I hadn’t anticipated the value of giving new staff time and space to learn when they first join the organisation. Effective onboarding makes a real difference.”
The lasting impact
Improved communications and social media strategies have become a core pillar of AEER’s organisational strategy. A stronger public profile has:
● Increased credibility
● Attracted higher quality candidates.
● Strengthened engagement with government stakeholders.
This institutional strengthening is already translating into deeper community impact.
Community engagement in East Kalimantan
AEER is supporting communities in East Kalimantan affected by coal mining and lacking access to electricity, following feasibility studies on energy access. With strengthened internal capacity and newly recruited technical expertise, AEER is working toward community ownership of sustainable energy solutions — moving beyond short-term access toward long-term empowerment.
Supporting communities near the Cilegon Steel Plant
AEER is also supporting communities living near the Cilegon steel plant, where residents face serious air quality concerns and intimidation from actors associated with the plant.
The recruitment of engineers and technical experts has strengthened the community’s ability to document environmental harm and present evidence to the National Human Rights Commission. Communities are now more organised, confident, and strategically equipped to advocate for their rights.
Key learning from the consultancy support experience
“Advocacy - vision and mission - won’t happen without the institutional supporting structures to Deliver.”
“Effective staff engagement, management, delegation and trust is key to success.”
“A flexible, bespoke approach, aligned to AEER’s evolving needs and implementation capacity, was central to the success of this partnership. Incremental change, grounded in organisational readiness, enabled transformation without overwhelming the team.”
Advice from the AEER coordinator to another organisation looking for similar support “Forces for good in our society are not strongly organised - e.g., lack of good climate policies, need to improve how our organisations are run, healthy dynamics and structures to be impactful, particularly for young leaders. This is particularly important for community and advocacy leaders without management experience. Find the support you need to build a strong and effective organisation.”
