The year 2011 will be remembered for its great revolutions. The Arab world dominated the front pages. But as the revolution rollercoaster roared past, little revolutions – personal revolutions which brought about change or upheaval - were also going on, except they never made it to the news. Radio Netherlands Worldwide puts the people who made them happen in the spotlight in the end-of-the-year series My Little Revolution.

Part one, which you're reading now, features your voice. RNW asked if you had a personal story to tell about your own revolution on Facebook. The response was impressive, especially from Indonesia and Latin America: revolutions to improve education, build houses, help problem youths or simply to seek inner peace of mind.

Unexpected respect
In Yogyakarta, Hamdan’s little revolution was to bring different religions together. Hamdan, a Muslim, went to do an apprenticeship on an eastern Indonesian, mostly Christian island. He was afraid the local population would ignore him because of his religion.

But he found the people on the island open and welcoming, ready to give him any time or facilities he needed to eat and pray in keeping with Islam. “Christians turned out to be different than I had been told at home. They took my religion into account and were helpful,” says Hamdan. His little revolution is that he set up seminars and workshops to share his experiences. “I now believe that people from different religions can live together peacefully.”

Addicted to the mountains
A revolution also stands for building a new future. Sometimes literally. Andrés Ferrer Ferrero from Uruguay sent in a photograph of a group of people who constructed their own houses in the old centre of Montevideo. He was one of the helpers who carried the stones. “By building homes for everyone, we make our city more beautiful and more dignified.”

Naelil Marom’s little revolution was in his Indonesian village Desa Cikadu. Many young people there are poor and unemployed. Many are addicts with all the predictable problems. Naelil asked a number of them to join him for his hobby – mountain-climbing.

He managed to get sponsorship from a youth organisation to buy equipment. “Maybe I can’t help all the addicts, but some of them have kicked the habit and have become addicted to a new hobby – mountain-climbing,” says Naelil describing his own revolution.

Up in arms for education
Elsewhere in Indonesia, Amien dreamed all his life of having his own school on the island of Ternate, where children could learn English. It wasn’t possible to learn it anywhere on the island. Last year, he and his girlfriend Nissa took the first steps. They both teach English a couple of times a week to 30 children.

“I have to travel a long distance to get there, but it’s something I really want to do,” says Amien. “I get to live my passion and hopefully, a knowledge of English will open up more opportunities for the children.”

Pedro Fernando Salamanca Lara fought a ‘classic’ revolution in Colombia against the privatisation of education. “My little revolution was a battle for better education in my country – weeks of unrelenting campaigning, demonstrations and debates,” says Pedro. After a month of strikes and protest actions, the Colombian government scrapped the plans. “It was a victory for us, but the fight for better education continues.”

(read on below the photos)

“The feeling that I’m really living”
Some revolutions are invisible for others – they’re inner journeys through the mind. “My revolution in 2011 is small, step by step, but at the same time, gigantic,” writes Daniela Scarafia from Argentina. “I’m the type of person who worries about my parents, my sisters and my five small nephews.

But this year, when I turned 36, I made a decision not to get so involved in the problems of others. I want to have the feeling of living consciously.” Her photograph of a campfire is symbolic of Daniela’s revolution. “It’s like an inner fire that started to burn inside me and enabled me to lead my own life.”

Like other young people, Riza Nur Fikri wants to be able to go on internet and Facebook. But his village on Java island doesn’t have a cyber cafe. He does have a mobile phone but couldn’t afford a modem for a mobile.

So, he saved anything from two hundred rupiah (10 or 20 cents) to 2,000 rupiah (2 euro) for a whole year. Then he was able to buy a modem – a very little, humble revolution in his own life. He’s now able to go on the internet and has a Facebook account. “Thanks to internet, I can learn more about the world.”

And the winner is…
This is just a short selection of the many responses we received about little revolutions in the world. We’d like to sincerely thank everyone who answered our call. We chose one winner from all the entries: the iPod Nano goes to mountain-climber Naelil Marom from Indonesia. Congratulations!

(jn/rk)