Women-led recycling initiative wins int’l environment prize

Novia D. Rulistia ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 05/17/2009 11:37 AM  |  Discover

JP/R. BERTO WEDHATAMA

When young women group together they can make great, positive changes. Through her Bali-based NGO Bali Fokus, Yuyun Ismawati and her followers have created programs to help the environment and change the future of the island.

They recycle solid waste into useful, profitable merchandise and have become actively involved in the waste management of the region’s ubiquitous pig farms.

But these are just some of the planet-saving initiatives they are engaged in. Yuyun’s efforts to recycle began in 1996 and have earned her international acknowledgement as this year’s recipient of the Goldman Environmental Prize, complete with US$150,000.

The Goldman Environmental Prize is an award dedicated to environmental heroes whose efforts to protect the world’s natural resources are increasingly critical to the well-being of the planet we all share.

Mario Gunmoe from the US, Wanze Eduards and Hugo Jabini from Suriname, Rizwana Hasa from Bangladesh, Olga Speranskaya and Marc Ona Essangui from Gabon also took home the prizes, which were awarded last month in San Fransisco, the United States of America.

“This is not only my achievement, it’s also a prize for the communities I’ve been working with, for their willingness to change their mindset,” Yuyun told reporters on April 29.

The mother of two said that it was not easy to talk the people, especially those in slums, into getting involved in waste management, but she managed to convince them that they could also contribute to create a healthier living world.

“It’s actually easy, and low-cost. But the will must come from them.”

Through her KIPRAH (Kita Pro Sampah, or We are Pro Waste) program, which is part of Bali Fokus, households are asked to leave their garbage at a certain drop-off point. There, waste which can be recycled is sorted. Each garbage-pooling zone can manage garbage from 300 to 1,000 households.
“The new management can reduce household waste brought to final dump sites by 60 percent, so the site won’t be overload,” Yuyun said.

Coordinating with several other local NGOs, the program also runs in villages in numerous cities including Makassar in South Sulawesi, Tangerang in Banten and Sidoarjo in East Java.

As Bali is one of the world’s best holiday destinations, hotels there are required to have a green label certification on waste management.

“We can create a mutual relationship here, collecting waste from the hotels which can be used by scavengers and pig farmers,” Yuyun said.

It does not stop there. Yuyun also helps train farmers to manage the waste from their pigs so that it does not create too much smell.

Bali Fokus has introduced the bio-digester method to the farmers, in which pig dung is kept in a special tank where it decomposes through an anaerobic process.

Anaerobic decomposition reduces the net energy and changes the chemical composition of organic matter with microorganisms in an oxygen-free environment.

“This award is just a start of my journey in familiarizing waste management,” Yuyun said.

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