Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition Sheila Kurnia Putri1.
Shauma Silmi Faza2.
Arif Budiman3 Institut Seni Budaya Indonesia (ISBI) Bandung 212 Buah Batu Street.
Bandung.
Indonesia sheila_kurniapoetri@yahoo.
com, 2silmifazas@gmail.
com, 3arif.
budiman@isbi.
ABSTRACT
This study analyzes the role of digital literacy in revitalizing the Perang Tomat (Tomato Wa.
tradition in Cikareumbi Village during the post-pandemic period.
The program employed a Participatory Action Research (PAR) methodology, engaging artists, youth, and community elders in training on digital content related to cultural branding and creative media production.
Participants were trained to create cultural content with smartphones, manage social media accounts, and reinterpret digital platforms as instruments for cultural representation.
Empirical evidence indicates notable enhancements in the digital capacity of the community.
The Instagram insights for the newly established AuMekar Budaya LembangAy account indicate 3,299 views and 128 interactions over the course of one month, with 61.
3% of viewers classified as non-followers.
Furthermore, 85% of participants demonstrated proficiency in content creation, 78% acquired skills for independent media management, and 60% grasped the principles of cultural branding.
The findings indicate that digital literacy enables individuals to narrate stories within their communities and enhances the visibility of Perang Tomat beyond its local context.
The study concludes that digital literacy serves as both a technical skill and a cultural strategy, enhancing community agency and promoting cultural sustainability.
This model of community-based digital empowerment provides a replicable framework for the promotion of intangible heritage in digitally mediated contexts.
Keyword: Cultural Festival.
Community Empowerment.
Creative Economy.
Digital Literacy.
Perang Tomat
INTRODUCTION
Amid
COVID-19
globalization and technological disruption, pandemic, which suspended many cultural IndonesiaAos intangible cultural heritage faces practices for years.
In this context, cultural increasingly complex existential challenges.
preservation requires more than merely Communal traditions that once served as maintaining inherited forms.
it demands intergenerational spaces for transmitting values have been eroded by lifestyle changes, meanings and values of tradition while Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 keeping them relevant within contemporary District, exemplifies this idea.
Conceived by Sundanese Abah Nanu One of the most compelling expressions Munajar Dahlan in 2011, the tradition emerged as an agrarian response to the phenomenon of invented tradition, a concept economic collapse following a tomato price introduced by Hobsbawm and Ranger The act of throwing tomatoes among referring not to artificial constructions but to villagers became both a ritual of self- social innovations designed to maintain purification .
iceun geugeuleuh keukeumeu.
and an expression of communal solidarity.
present (Hobsbawm & Ranger, 2.
Over the past fourteen years.
Perang Tomat Although Perang Tomat is a relatively has evolved into a cultural icon and leading young invented tradition, the use of tomatoes tourism attraction in West Bandung Regency, as a medium for collective festivity is not even drawing international visitors, and has entirely new in global cultural history.
been officially recognized by the West Java prominent example is La Tomatina in Buyol.
Department of Culture and Tourism (Decree Spain, which originated from an altercation No.
430/KEP.
009-DISBUDPAR/2.
among local youths in the 1940s and later However, the COVID-19 pandemic developed into a major annual cultural event.
brought the tradition to a halt for over four The knowledge transmission and diminishing participants each year.
Acknowledging this youth participation.
As a relatively young global parallel situates Perang Tomat within cultural practice.
Perang Tomat risks losing its vitality without strategic intervention.
The pandemic has also sped up the shift to digital demonstrating that similar symbolic practices methods of promoting culture, making online This spaces the main places for sharing and contextualization reinforces the relevance of expressing heritage.
For communities such as the present study by showing that Perang Cikareumbi.
Tomat is part of a wider tradition in which ecosystem is essential to sustaining their agricultural products become expressions of cultural identity.
Findings from a Focus cultural identity, solidarity, and communal Group Discussion (FGD) conducted in July 2025 reveal an interesting paradox: while the agrarian-based When these new traditions take root community possesses rich cultural assets and a strategic geographical position within the community, they gain authenticity and Lembang tourism area, their digital literacy Tomat skills remain limited.
There is no official (Tomato Wa.
Kampung social media management, cultural content Cikareumbi.
Cikidang Village.
Lembang production is sporadic, and most residents The Perang Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition lack a basic understanding of communication (Sekarningrum & Lokita, 2.
highlight the strategy and media ethics.
Consequently, the role of digital media in maintaining public narrative of Perang Tomat is largely shaped by engagement with palace culture, while Ratih external actorsAimedia outlets, bloggers, and et al.
(Ratih et al.
, 2.
demonstrate the travel vloggersAiwhile the cultural owners strengthening cultural education among shaping their public image.
e-books This study aims to empower the Cikareumbi applied studies show how digital literacy literacy training as a strategic effort to training directly contributes to the promotion revitalize the Perang Tomat tradition in the and sustainability of local cultural festivals.
post-pandemic Kobis et al.
(Kobis et al.
, 2.
found that participatory action and community-based digital literacy workshops in Talawaan learning, the program seeks to enhance the Tourism Village enabled residents to create communityAos capacity in managing digital and manage digital promotional content, platforms, promoting cultural tourism, and significantly improving the visibility of local sustaining cultural identity through self- cultural attractions.
Similarly.
Rohimah et al.
managed narratives.
The rationale lies in (Rohimah et al.
, 2.
revealed that digital addressing the digital divide that limits rural mentoring programs in Jelekong Art and communitiesAo Cultural Village preserve their own heritage.
Through this initiative, the research not only contributes to the sustainability of a locally invented tradition promotion of traditional arts.
In Lamongan, but also offers a model of how digital Munajah and Sumiati (Mujanah & Sumiati, empowerment can become a transformative tool for cultural resilience in the face of global digital literacy within religious tourism communities empowered participants to Aligned with these findings, several Recent studies emphasize the crucial construct cultural narratives that reinforce role of digital literacy as a strategic approach to cultural preservation in the post-pandemic Furthermore.
Sari et al.
(Sari & Virgy, 2.
Digitalization has been shown not only to expand access and participation but also to Indigenous enhance the visibility of local traditions understanding Indigenous Cultural and within virtual public spaces.
(David Adi Intellectual Property (ICIP) rights to prevent Saputra (Saputra, 2.
Mauluddin et al.
symbolic exploitation in digital spaces.
(Mauluddin et al.
, 2.
Profetik et al.
Complementarily, (Profetik et al.
, 2.
Riski Dwi Putri et al.
(Ahadiyyah (Putri et al.
, 2.
Sekarningrum and Lokita pedagogical dimension by showing that Ahadiyah Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 project-based Tarung Adu Tomat ritual.
Although these intercultural participation and appreciation studies offer valuable insights into the social, of cultural diversity.
economic, and symbolic dimensions of the From a global perspective.
Ricciardelli et al.
(Ricciardelli et al.
, 2.
and Svitlana empowerment as a revitalization strategy in Semenko et al.
(Semenko et al.
, 2.
argue the post-pandemic context.
This research that digitalization plays a pivotal role in therefore fills that gap by examining digital sustaining cultural activities across Europe literacy as a community-based instrument for during crises, functioning both as a means of the revitalization and sustainability of local Meanwhile.
This study was designed to address Lahpan et al.
(Lahpan et al.
, 2.
and these gaps through a Participatory Action Nirwana Research (PAR) approach, positioning the Nugroho, 2.
underline that successful community not as passive beneficiaries but as active agents engaged in every stage, from planning and implementation to reflection Nugroho (Nirwana communities act not merely as passive Consistent recipients of technology but as active agents articulating their cultural identity in digital community agency and ownership (Ife & Tesoriero, 2.
, this program aims to Collectively, these studies suggest that strengthen the digital capacity of Cikareumbi digital literacy transcends technical skills.
residents to revitalize the Tomato War serves as a transformative strategy for Festival ensuring the continuity of traditions within community-managed online platforms.
an ever-evolving cultural landscape.
Within Moreover, the initiative aligns with this discourse, prior research specifically addressing the Tomato War Festival in development frameworks: .
SDG 8 (Decent Cikareumbi provides essential contextual Work and Economic Growt.
, promoting foundations for the present study.
Rahmat et culture-based economic opportunities.
(Rahmat et al.
, 2.
examined cultural SDG branding as a communication strategy for Communitie.
, preserving cultural heritage sustainable tourism, and Adelia et al.
(Adelia while enhancing local tourism.
Asta Cita Setyobudi, (Sustainable Cities commodification of cultural practices and competitiveness through digital branding.
IndonesiaAos Higher Education Key socio-economic Abdullah Nulaena (Abdullah Performance Indicators (IKU), encouraging Nulaena, 2.
focused on social solidarity and collective cohesion within the Rempug Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition measurable societal impact.
Beyond merely Study Site and Participants The program aspires to build an ecosystem where Kampung Cikareumbi RW 03.
Cikidang local traditions and global technologies Village.
Lembang District.
West Bandung coexist symbiotically, negotiating cultural Regency, approximately 25 km from the continuity and digital innovation for the Indonesian Institute of Arts and Culture collective well-being of society.
(ISBI) Bandung.
The site was selected based on three considerations: .
the presence of METHODS Perang Tomat as an invented tradition This study employed a Participatory post-pandemic Action Research (PAR) approach, positioning .
the communityAos enthusiasm the community as active co-researchers rather for enhancing digital capacity.
its than passive beneficiaries.
PAR was chosen potential to develop a culture-based creative because it facilitates a continuous cycle of A total of 30 participants were reflection and action, enabling participants involved, categorized into three groups:
not only to receive knowledge transfer but Artists and cultural practitioners (OO15 also to identify problems, design context- participant.
actively involved in the based solutions, implement interventions.
Perang and evaluate outcomes (Chan & Saidon, traditional arts .
uch as gotong singa.
This Tomat festival Youth members of Karang principles of community empowerment that Taruna (OO7 participant.
are responsible emphasize agency and ownership in driving for managing digital platforms and social change (Ife et al.
, 2.
sustaining activities beyond the project Complementing the PAR framework, the study adopted KnowlesAo Adult Learning Theory, which asserts that adult learning Community elders (OO8 serving as custodians of collective must be experiential, problem-centered, and relevant to real-life contexts (Knowles et al.
Accordingly, the training modules This were designed through a learning-by-doing approach, in which participants directly sustainable knowledge transfer.
practiced digital content creation using their Stage of Implementation own smartphones.
The contents were locally The contextualized, focusing on documenting the engagement were conducted over a two- Perang Tomat tradition and promoting the month period (August-September 2.
, tourism potential of Kampung Cikareumbi.
structured into five main phases:
Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 Socialization and Needs AssessmentAi Conducted Infrastructure Strengthening Group Closure Ae Provision of supporting tools (Wi-Fi router, microphone, smartphone, community leaders, youth, and local and signage labeled AuMekar BudayaA.
authorities to map digital readiness, local symbolizing the communityAos digital potentials, and technological needs.
Discussions Focus (FGD.
Community Roles and Data Analysis Digital Literacy and Cultural Branding TrainingAiDelivered Techniques All interactive sessions:
Session 1: Digital literacy and social Community legitimacy and coordination, youth groups media management (Sheila Kurnia acted as implementers, cultural practitioners Putr.
Session contributed creative content, and village Photography, officials facilitated logistical and institutional videography, and creative content production (Shauma Silmi Faz.
Data were collected through in-depth Session 3: Branding strategies and interviews, participant observation, visual (Arif documentation, and social media analytics.
Budima.
Each The data were analyzed using thematic analysis Miles & Huberman to identify employing a participatory format consisting patterns of capacity transformation, adaptive of 30% theoretical input, 50% practice, and strategies, and critical reflections on the 20% reflective discussion.
Activities were scheduled between 15:30 and 19:30 local time empowerment (Huberman & Miles, 2.
to accommodate community routines.
This analytical framework allowed the study to reveal not only technical outcomes but also Implementation 4Ae5 MentoringAi managing official social media accounts (Instagram.
TikTok.
Facebook.
YouTube, and a dedicated websit.
Mentorship
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
was provided through eight on-site visits The Tomato War Tradition as Cultural The Tomato War tradition represents Participatory Evaluation Ae Evaluation the cultural identity of the Cikareumbi combined social media performance community by combining agrarian values, analytics, participant reflection, and Capital of Cikareumbi Community for real-time troubleshooting.
culture-based Participants formed a village media team and online consultations via WhatsApp Sundanese Initiated in 2011 by the Sundanese improvement in digital capacity, content cultural figure Abah Nanu Munajar Dahlan quality, and training effectiveness.
Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition as a creative response to the tomato price transform traditional cultural capital into crisis, this ritual has transcended mere it has become a mechanism of positioned the Cikareumbi community as collective solidarity and cultural resilience.
narrators and curators of their own culture, the framework of cultural capital Bourdieu, reclaiming authority over representation and the Tomato War functions as a symbolic asset that reinforces social cohesion and legitimizes perpetuated by outsider media.
the communityAos cultural agency within the This Furthermore.
Tomato War broader context of West Javanese traditions illustrates the dynamic nature of intangible (Huang, 2.
While performance, its value extends beyond the socio-economic.
Local entrepreneurs leverage the event for smallscale commerce, producing souvenirs and culinary experiences tied to the festival.
The recognition of such activities highlights that cultural capital can also be a catalyst for Figure 1 The AuTomato WarAy tradition in Cikareumbi Village as a symbol of solidarity and symbolic resources that reinforce community of local economic growth and cultural identity and social cohesion.
The digital COVID-19 literacy program enabled this cultural capital pandemic caused a four-year hiatus that to be transformed into digital capital, disrupted the intergenerational transmission capital, the Perang Tomat tradition represents in 2016, the festival evolved into a key driver Based on BourdieuAos concept of cultural Cultural Heritage of West Bandung Regency static spectacle rather than a living practice.
After recognition as an Intangible Additionally, adaptation, the tradition risks becoming a (Source: Djuli Pamungkas, 2.
However, heritage requires active stewardship.
collective gratitude among the community.
demonstrated by measurable increases in audience engagement on the Mekar Budaya This condition illustrates how Lembang platform.
The improvement in cultural capital, when not supported by content creation skills .
%) and social media adaptive digital media strategies, can easily visibility .
,299 views in one mont.
indicates lose its vitality in the digital age.
that cultural practices can gain renewed The community service program on vitality when mediated through digital digital literacy provided a strategic avenue to Thus, the findings empirically Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 support BourdieuAos idea that cultural assets mastered content production, 78% learned to manage media independently, and 60% contemporary fields of social practice.
understood the fundamentals of cultural Digital Literacy as a New Space of These metrics are not merely Cultural Expression indicators of skill acquisition but represent a The shift in epistemic power: from passive Village was more than recipients of media narratives to active technical training.
it was an epistemic cultural narrators in the digital public sphere.
intervention that redefined how a community To provide a clearer overview of the sees and narrates itself in the digital era.
communityAos capacity transformation, the Participants were not merely taught to use following table summarizes the improvement social media.
they were guided to reinterpret in participantsAo digital competencies during technology as a medium of self-expression the program.
Cikareumbi The producing photos, videos, and captions about Table 1.
Improvement of ParticipantsAo Perang Tomat became a process of reclaiming Digital Capacity represented to representing themselves.
Empirical The Mekar Budaya Lembang Instagram established and managed by participants after the completion of the digital literacy training in September 2025, recorded 3,299 views and 128 interactions between 21 September and 20 October 2025, with 61.
of viewers being non-followers.
This digital Competency Mastery Percentage Content creation .
hoto/vide.
Social media Cultural branding Basic digital ethics Caption writing and digital storytelling The data in Table 1 shows a significant outreach demonstrates that the community successfully extended its cultural presence participantsAo creative skills following the digital literacy beyond local boundaries.
The engagement The highest improvement appears rate dominated by posts .
3%) rather than in content creation .
%), indicating that stories reveals the effectiveness of static and hands-on practice using smartphones and short-form visual storytelling in building guided exercises effectively strengthened audience connection.
Furthermore, internal participantsAo ability to produce visual and assessments showed that 85% of participants Social Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition management .
%) and digital storytelling .
%) also show strong results, reflecting the participantsAo growing confidence in handling Meanwhile, cultural branding essentials .
%) and digital ethics .
%) illustrate that Figure 2 Instagram insight of the Mekar Budaya Lembang account showing audience engagement and visibility one month after the digital literacy training (SeptemberAeOctober 2.
(Source: Field data, 2.
while foundational understanding has been achieved, continued mentoring is still needed to deepen participantsAo strategic and ethical considerations when representing cultural To complement the visual information traditions online.
Overall, these indicators in Figure 2, the numerical breakdown of the show that the program effectively fostered Instagram metrics is presented in Table 2.
both technical competence and reflective Table 2.
Instagram Insights of AuMekar awareness among community members.
Budaya LembangAy Beyond individual skill development, .
September Ae 20 October 2.
the impact of the digital literacy program can also be observed through the performance of the communityAos newly established social Indicator Total views 3,299 Total interactions Non-follower media platforms.
The Instagram analytics during the first month of operation reflect the Value Dominant content Posts .
most notable results.
Table 2 presents the initial performance Empirical of the newly created AuMekar Budaya The Mekar Budaya Lembang LembangAy Instagram account within one Instagram account recorded 3,299 views and month after the training.
The total of 3,299 128 interactions during its first month, with a views and 128 interactions indicates a 3% of the audience consisting of considering that the account was previously non-followers.
This result demonstrates that the content produced by the community began reaching a wider public beyond the were nonthe successfully reached audiences beyond the immediate local network.
These analytics are immediate community through algorithmic visually presented in Figure 2.
The Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 From Cultural Broker to Cultural dominance of posts .
3%) as the most Collective: Redefining Leadership and Authorship effectiveness of static images and short videos Traditionally, in capturing audience attention for cultural These Tomato WarAos sustainability depended on the charisma of Abah Nanu, a cultural broker mediating community-produced digital narratives can between sacred ritual and public spectacle.
expand the cultural presence of Perang The programAos success in nurturing eight Tomat and strengthen local identity through digital cultural cadres signifies a paradigmatic broader online exposure.
shift from charismatic to distributed cultural Here, knowledge is no longer participatory digital education can change owned by one person.
instead, it is made by This people of all ages working together.
the way people think about media and help them become more critical consumers of it.
Participants were encouraged not only to post content but also to analyze audience reception, reflect on digital ethics, and contextualize Perang Tomat within broader cultural narratives.
This analytical approach Figure 3 Digital content training and documentation by Cikareumbi youth, alongside an interview with Abah Nanu Munajar DahlanAithe creator of the AuTomato WarAy tradition.
strengthened critical thinking skills and complexities of cultural representation in digital spaces.
By embedding reflection into (Source : Sheila Kurnia Putri, 2.
technical training, the program ensured that This reconfiguration challenges the digital literacy evolved into a practice of myth of the solitary artist or leader as cultural Instead, culture is kept alive by a content production.
In essence, this initiative exemplifies how networked authorship model in which older digital literacy can evolve into cultural people give it symbolic legitimacy and literacy, where technology is not only a tool younger people bring technological fluency.
for dissemination but also a reflective space The interplay between the two generates self-definition.
what Latour calls a network of actants, a storytelling, the Cikareumbi community living ecology of human and non-human turns social media into a vibrant record of agents .
ituals, devices, platform.
that co- their identity, making sure that Perang Tomat produce cultural meaning (Andrade & remains a lively and evolving cultural conversation instead of just a fixed tradition.
Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition Ekundayo, 2.
, (Banoet, 2.
, (Plesner, resilient to social disruption.
It also fosters a 2.
, (Budiman et al.
, 2.
sense of ownership and pride among youth.
The revitalization process also aligns positioning them as co-authors of a living with LatourAos Actor-Network Theory, which heritage, thereby addressing challenges of cultural attrition in a rapidly modernizing produced through networks of human and non-human actors.
In this study, elders.
Glocal Heritage and the Dialectics of youth, facilitators, smartphones, routers, and Visibility Through digital mediation.
Perang interconnected actants that co-produce the Tomat traverses geographical and cultural meaning and sustainability of Perang Tomat.
The emergence of eight digital cultural cadres heritage, a tradition both local in origin and a glocal global in reach.
This process, however, is double-edged.
Digital recognition but also risks commodification.
demonstrating that cultural continuity results As Appadurai notes, global cultural flows from collaborative interactions within this socio-technical network.
democratize culture or dilute its meaning Thus, the digital cadre becomes more (Appadurai, 1.
than a group of content creators.
they are In this sense, the digital visibility of mediators of continuity, transforming the Perang Tomat is a political act: a form of idea of stewardship from preservation to cultural decolonization where representation This shift also illustrates the is reclaimed from external curatorship.
The value of mentorship as a horizontal, rather Mekar Budaya Lembang platforms function not than hierarchical, process.
Knowledge flows wisdom with technical innovation and They AppaduraiAos concept of mediascapes helps explain how Perang Tomat gains new Moreover, this collective approach and data into dialogic exchange.
social, and generational changes.
transform spectatorship into participation leadership that can adapt to technological, infrastructures enabling communities to multidirectionally, combining experiential visibility within global cultural flows.
With 3% of Instagram viewers being non- democratizing the authority of cultural followers, the tradition transcends local The distributed model ensures boundaries and enters glocal circulation, that the tradition is not dependent on a single where local identity interacts with global charismatic figure, which makes it more This digital mobility, supported Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 by community-produced content, validates appropriated collectively, becomes a site of AppaduraiAos argument that media have an cultural negotiation rather than domination.
important influence on the contemporary This model integrates three pillars:
However.
Cultural Consciousness Ae preserving authenticity through reflective digital communityAos conscious effort to embed cultural context in its posts ensures that Collaborative Agency Ae promoting cultural authorship.
The challenges of glocalization also Critical Sustainability Ae ensuring that emphasize the ethical responsibilities of digital presence translates into local digital representation.
Expanding reach is desirable, but it is crucial to present cultural The community actively negotiates these tensions by including explanations, stories, and historical context with visual content.
This keeps the tradition's depth and meaning This approach models a conscious balance between global engagement and local authenticity, demonstrating that visibility Figure 4 Group photo of researchers, facilitators, does not necessarily entail dilution when and the Cikareumbi community at the conclusion of the digital literacy program.
mediated thoughtfully.
(Source : Sheila Kurnia Putri, 2.
However, sustainability depends on whether visibility can remain relational.
Additionally, the model emphasizes anchored in shared values rather than metrics of reach.
The challenge is not to make tradition go viral, but to make it vital:
continuous reflection, feedback, and adaptive strategies reinforce both digital and cultural Toward a Model of Community-Based Digital Empowerment community-based one-off iterative cycles of action and reflection, the program nurtured resilience, adaptability, and innovation, positioning the community cultural pedagogy.
Its success lies not in is an ongoing, dialogical process rather than empowerment that unites PAR with critical collectively, highlighting that empowerment Cikareumbi experience proposes a replicable The training sessions were From Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition sustaining cultural vitality.
creatively to external pressures such as The Tomato War is no longer knowledge with the youthAos technological merely a spectacle of the past.
it is a living skills, the community develops hybrid discourse on how tradition and technology practices that retain traditional meaning can co-evolve, creating not just a festival but while appealing to contemporary audiences.
a philosophy of resilience for communities For instance, ritual explanations, storytelling navigating post-pandemic futures.
Learning eldersAo transcends recovery.
it becomes an act of Intergenerational translated into digital formats such as short Cultural Continuity An important dimension highlighted accessible to younger generations and even by this study is the role of intergenerational learning in sustaining cultural practices.
The digital literacy program facilitated structured innovation in ritual presentation, ensuring interactions between elders who carry ritual that Perang Tomat remains relevant and Furthermore, the collaborative technological fluency.
These interactions environment strengthens social cohesion, as created a feedback loop where traditional shared learning experiences create trust, wisdom informs digital storytelling, and digital experimentation reinvigorates interest responsibility toward heritage preservation.
in heritage.
Such a mechanism ensures Perang Tomat becomes a lived tradition that Participants extend beyond the Perang Tomat context.
These representation and create avenues for micro- the communal sense of ownership over entrepreneurship, such as selling digital cultural narratives.
content, merchandise, or offering guided In addition, intergenerational learning and narrative framing, developing skills that strengthening social bonds and reinforcing photography, video editing, graphic design, reducing the risk of cultural attrition over Moreover, storytelling has emerged as a catalyst for local learning within the social fabric of the village.
Beyond cultural preservation, digital and communal identity.
By embedding Local Creativity and Economy the underlying values of cooperation, respect.
Digital Storytelling as a Catalyst for continuity not only of ritual forms but also of This process The demonstrates that empowering communities Pantun Jurnal lmiah Seni Budaya Vol.
10 No.
2 Desember 2025 with digital skills can simultaneously nurture competence but also as a transformative creative industries while maintaining cultural This dual impact exemplifies the traditions in the post-pandemic era.
potential of participatory digital initiatives to initially anticipated in the introduction, the participatory digital literacy program in innovation, and local economic development.
Cikareumbi Village successfully bridged the highlighting that culture and creativity are gap between cultural preservation and sustainable community development.
Moreover.
Through empowerment framework of Participatory Action Research, the community transitioned process stimulates entrepreneurial mindsets from passive cultural subjects to active digital among participants by encouraging them to explore the cultural economy in a structured represent their own traditions in the public and creative way.
For example, participants experiment with monetizing digital content.
The findings reaffirm that community- such as creating thematic photo collections, short documentaries, or cultural guides, cultural resilience and creative sustainability.
which can be marketed to local tourists or The revitalization of the Perang Tomat sold online.
These activities demonstrate that tradition through locally produced digital content and the establishment of Mekar development are not mutually exclusive.
Budaya LembangAos social media platforms rather, they can be mutually reinforcing illustrates how technology can serve as a when guided by strategic digital literacy.
medium of decolonized cultural expression.
addition, the initiative strengthens local The branding by linking cultural authenticity to collective participation, and digital branding has proven effective in extending the visibility of local heritage to global audiences economic sustainability.
Over time, these practices may contribute to the emergence of communal values.
a small-scale creative industry ecosystem in Cikareumbi.
Furthermore, this study highlights the broader implications for cultural policy and innovation, and digital skills coalesce to By demonstrating how digital maintaining the integrity of local traditions.
preservation, it provides a model educational institutions, local governments.
CONCLUSION and cultural organizations to collaborate in This study demonstrates that digital supporting intangible heritage.
Training literacy can function not only as a technical programs that combine technological skills Literacy Enhancement for Promoting the Cikareumbi Tomato War Festival as a Post-Pandemic Sundanese Cultural Tradition Acknowledgments with cultural reflection can cultivate a The authors would like to express their stewards capable of sustaining heritage in deepest gratitude to the Directorate of increasingly mediated environments.
Research Community Service.
This model has the potential to be Directorate General of Higher Education, replicated in other cultural communities that Research, and Technology.
Ministry of want to protect Research may investigate Education, interdisciplinary frameworks that integrate Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, for ethnography, digital humanities, and creative media practice to enhance the theoretical Community Service Program (PKM) under comprehension of cultural sustainability in the BIMA Grant Scheme 2025.
Special the digital era and promote intangible appreciation is extended to the community of Kampung Cikareumbi RW 03.
Desa Cikidang.
Future studies may explore Kecamatan Lembang.
Kabupaten Bandung interdisciplinary frameworks that combine Research.
Barat, particularly Abah Nanu (Mas Nanu ethnography, digital humanities, and creative Munajar Dahla.
Aithe originator of the media practice to deepen the theoretical Perang Tomat tradition along with Cucu and understanding of cultural sustainability in Use .
illage elder.
and the youth of Karang the digital age.
Moreover, cooperation among Taruna, whose participation and enthusiasm academic institutions, municipal authorities, made this collaborative project possible.
and creative sectors will be essential in Their collective commitment to cultural expanding this empowerment model to foster preservation has been the cornerstone of this inclusive cultural economies and ensure the research endeavor.
enduring resilience of local identities in a globalized context.
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