Rekam Nusantara-Urban Sustainability and SATGAS Naturalisasi Ciliwung Kota Bogor are taking important steps in protecting the environment. They held an education program about waste in three schools in Bogor City. This activity is supported by WWF Indonesia through the program Plastic Smart Cities.
The schools selected were SDN Kedung Halang 5, SMPN 11 Kota Bogor, and Pesantren Daarul Uluum (high school level), considering their position close to the Ciliwung River. The main goal is to reduce the use of single-use plastic and students are taught various important things about waste management.
The material provided includes an introduction to types of waste so that it is easy to sort. Students also learn about the journey of waste from its source to the final disposal site. They are given an understanding of the dangers of waste to health and how to manage waste so that it can be reused. What is interesting is that each school level is asked to create waste management innovations that are appropriate to the waste problems in their school.
One of the students, Queen from class 4 of SDN Kedung Halang 5, was very enthusiastic about participating in this program. He dared to express his opinion about the importance of sorting waste. Queen said, "To be easy to process and not smelly, waste must be sorted by type. I have also brought tumblers and food containers to reduce plastic waste."
This program doesn't just stop there. To monitor changes in behavior, once a week SATGAS Naturalisasi Ciliwung will evaluate developments in each school. The aim is to ensure the creation of a good waste sorting and management system in these schools. Education has been carried out, sorting bags have been provided and monitoring and evaluation have been intensified, this is a plus in encouraging changes to a better waste management system in schools that are assisted by the SATGAS Naturalisasi Ciliwung.
In the future, it is hoped that this program can be implemented in more schools. That way, more and more students will understand the importance of managing waste. They can be agents of change at home and in the surrounding environment. This will help reduce the increasingly worrying problem of waste, especially plastic. If successful, cities in Indonesia could become examples of good waste management.