Trash Hero Saba | Trash Hero World

Trash Hero holds zero waste workshop in Bali

by Rima Agustina on 13/12/2021 4 comments

Entering its eighth year, new challenges have emerged for Trash Hero Indonesia. No longer do we wonder how to get people to join our clean ups, but how to prevent the trash from existing in the first place. With the increasing recognition of Trash Hero Indonesia as an organisation advocating the concept of zero waste, we are receiving more and more requests to educate the local communities.

And so the Trash Hero Communities workshop in Bali was born. The local Trash Hero leaders were eager to do something more than cleanups and to get practical ideas to tackle the waste problem in their local neighbourhoods.

The full-day workshop took place in Ubud on 16 November 2021, and was attended by 17 chapter leaders from villages all over Bali. Unlike our previous zero waste communities training, which was held online, this in-person workshop allowed us to teach the material in a more interactive way, using simulations, field observations, discussions and role playing. It was also specifically tailored to the local culture and context.

We included a visit to a community composting site, as well as a session on public speaking to build participants’ confidence when sharing their new knowledge. The workshop closed with a sharing session, discussing existing false solutions to the plastic crisis in Bali, what scenarios lie behind them, and how the participants should respond appropriately as Trash Heroes.

I Wayan Apple, representing Trash Hero Payangan, was grateful to attend this workshop, saying “I feel more confident and secure in choosing this ‘less-waste’ life path, as the knowledge I gained today has justified my decision.” Another participant, I Made Sukerta from Trash Hero Batubulan, said that “the teaching methods in this workshop helped [him] understand zero waste much more easily compared to one-way teaching.” Sukerta added, “I hope Trash Hero Indonesia develops more workshops like this in the future.”

The Trash Hero Indonesia chairman, I Wayan Aksara, who hosted the workshop, stated: “it is essential for our leaders to understand the zero waste concept not only in the technical aspect, but also the reason behind it: the fact that there is no Planet B. Thank you to Trash Hero World for conducting this workshop for our leaders.”

Trash Hero Indonesia will follow up with the participants to make sure they are supported in their efforts to take this knowledge back to their communities. And the live workshop format will be offered to other chapters both within Indonesia and beyond, as part of our new “Trash Hero Communities” programme in 2022, where circumstances allow.

Encouraging change through tradition in Bali

by Seema on 05/11/2020 No comments

Being a Trash Hero has become a way of life for thousands of volunteers around the world. Our simple and non-confrontational actions to reduce plastic waste can be integrated seamlessly into any cultural setting.

Here is a wonderful example in Bali, where the local Hindu community has made cleanups part of its religious rituals. The connection is powerful: linking sustainable practices with tradition makes them more socially acceptable. It turns “that problem” (external) into “our problem” and eventually “our responsibility”.

This is one of those rare videos where you feel that change happening through the screen. Our thanks to the talented videographer, Johan Wahyudi, who captured it all on Banyu Pinaruh day last year.

Trash Hero Saba Teaching the Heroes of Tomorrow Through Illustration

by Leslie Finlay on 17/04/2018 No comments

Experts have agreed for years that kids learn material differently than adults, and they also insist that how a child is educated bears great impact on his or her understanding of the world, shaping behaviours that will stay with a person throughout his or her life.

Trash Hero Saba has been working to fully engage its hero children from the classroom to the beaches.

In Saba, Indonesia, the local Trash Heroes have launched an innovative new program aimed at educating the local kids about how to responsibly manage trash in their communities, especially plastic waste, driving an overall message of zero-waste living.

Wayan Aksara’s team has developed a series of comic-style cartoons they release online, free for download and use. Wayan says that the comics are designed as supplementary materials for parents and elementary school teachers as a way to instill lifelong sustainable behaviours among the next generation of heroes in a more fun and interesting way.

Wayan Aksara says that new original comics created by his team will be posted on the group’s Facebook page, available for free to parents and educators alike.

Check out the Trash Hero Saba Facebook page and its partner BALIAN to follow the comic creations from the team, and let us know what creative, innovative ways your local community engages its heroes!