Self-organizing volunteers as a grassroot social innovation: the contribution and barrier to empowerment and collaborative governance in stunting intervention

Considering its contribution to solving societal issues, social innovation (SI) has become critical to driving community development. This paper exposes the role of SI in community development processes at a grassroots level, drawing on volunteers’ experience in collaborative stunting intervention in Sukabumi Regency, a rural area in Indonesia. This study employs a qualitative approach, incorporating data collection methods such as in-person interviews, observation, and document analysis. Findings reveal that human development volunteers, initially appointed by the state, have successfully established a forum that essentially functions as an informal self-organizing group. Self-organizing volunteers might be categorized as SI because they offer a new way of interacting with other actors in collaborative governance, paying attention to community problems and aiming to create community changes. Through the forum, cadres can participate not only as individuals but also that through collective actions. While their meaningful activities are visible, cadres face barriers to changing power relations in collaborative governance and making social changes. The findings contribute to the literature by showcasing an understanding of how self-organizing volunteers function as a social innovation in collaborative processes.