From Disaster Relief to Rational Privacy: My Journey into the Nightforce

How a career in disaster relief led me to discover the importance of privacy, sovereignty and Midnight.

Aug 10, 2026

Hi everyone, I’m Shokhibul Burhan you can call me SB in the community. I’m from Indonesia, and this is my short story of how I first discovered crypto and eventually became part of the Midnight Nightforce.

I first heard about crypto in early 2020. I was chatting with a colleague at work about what we jokingly called “the magic of paper money” fiat currency. He mentioned something he had heard about Bitcoin. He didn’t fully understand it yet, but the moment I heard the word “Bitcoin,” I felt genuinely excited. That conversation sparked my curiosity. From that day, I started digging deeper into Bitcoin, crypto, and blockchain.

Toward the end of 2020, while searching for crowdfunding and donation platforms (I regularly donate part of my income to people less fortunate), I stumbled upon an article about Cardano. I found the website of an Indonesian Cardano Stake Pool Operator (KAWAN SPO) that was channeling donations to disaster victims in Indonesia. As many of you know, Indonesia has the highest number of active volcanoes in the world, and natural disasters are a regular part of life here.

That discovery pulled me in. I wanted to understand what Cardano was and how this SPO worked. I joined the community, started learning about blockchain, staking, and rewards. What truly moved me was realizing that by staking, I could indirectly help the SPO produce blocks on the Cardano chain, and those rewards would be used to support disaster victims. It felt meaningful. Cardano wasn’t just technology it was a way for me to keep giving while learning something completely new.

Even though Bitcoin was the first crypto I heard about, Cardano (ADA) was the first cryptocurrency I actually bought on a centralized exchange and started staking. That was my real entry point.

Then came the NFT wave between 2021 and 2023. Like many others, I got caught up in the excitement. I became a Cardano NFT collector buying, selling, and enjoying the whole experience. Looking back, those years were pure chaos and fun at the same time.

What kept me in crypto wasn’t the trading or the price charts. Many people think crypto is only about making money, but for me it became something deeper. In the Cardano ecosystem I found friends, mentors, and a real sense of community almost like a family. That feeling of belonging is what made me stay.

Because I was already deeply involved in the Cardano Hub Indonesia Discord team, moderating several NFT and FT projects, and running an education community called Kita cardano Indonesia and Changemakers, I heard about Midnight very early right from the moment Charles Hoskinson started talking about it.

What caught my attention was Rational Privacy and the zero-knowledge technology behind it. The idea that privacy can be programmable, selective, and still compatible with real-world utility and compliance felt completely different. Midnight’s vision of becoming a privacy engine for other chains, combined with the fact that it comes from Charles Hoskinson (someone whose vision I deeply admire), made me highly interested.

The real “click” moment for me was when I fully understood Rational Privacy. It’s not absolute privacy that hides everything. It’s thoughtful, programmable privacy with selective disclosure privacy that can still work in the real world. That approach felt unique and much more practical than most other privacy projects I had seen.

Even though I learned about Midnight early, real-life responsibilities kept me busy. I finally applied and joined as a Nightforce ambassador in Cohort 4. On 5 August 2026 I received the email confirming I had been accepted as a Nightforce Recruit. I felt truly proud to be part of it.

In the beginning, I reached out to friends who had already joined earlier. The guidance and warm welcome I received from the community on Discord were incredible. I felt accepted right away.

Of course there are challenges. Being an ambassador means representing something bigger than yourself, so I have to keep learning and growing. But that challenge itself energizes me.

What I love most about the Nightforce and Midnight community is the people. They are purpose-driven. Everyone shares the same long-term mission, supports each other, and focuses on building something meaningful. The energy here feels different and I really love it.

Right now I feel proud and excited. I feel like I’m part of something that is genuinely building the future of useful privacy in Web3, not just chasing hype.

To anyone who is new to crypto or curious about Midnight:

Don’t just look at the price. Take time to understand Rational Privacy. If you care about keeping your personal data safe while still being able to use it in the real world, Midnight is worth exploring deeply.

Joining the Nightforce has made me more focused on long-term contribution, more disciplined in learning, and more confident that truly useful privacy is possible.

For me, Midnight Network is the answer.

One team, one dream.

Nightforce!

— SB (Shokhibul Burhan) —