As economic growth fosters consumption and boosts manufacturing output in Indonesia, the country simultaneously faces serious challenges in managing the amount of waste produced every day. Recent data from the Environment and Forest Ministry has shown that Indonesia produces an average of 0.7 kg of waste per person each day, generating an annual total of 64 million tons of waste. The scale of this issue demands an efficient country-level waste management system; however, Indonesian trash disposal sites are in a state of decay and are struggling to cope with tens of millions of tons of waste every year. This adversely affects the lives of millions of Indonesians living in coastal and rural areas, and gives Indonesia the dubious distinction of being the world’s second biggest contributor of plastic waste in the oceans.

To address this increasingly severe challenge, the Indonesian government has attempted to impose stricter waste management and recycling regulations. Despite these steps in the right direction, the urgency of the problem demands immediate solutions.

In the district of Lombok, West Nusa Tenggana, entrepreneurship has provided an answer to the problem of waste showing how, with proper management and good recycling technology, waste can definitely bring revenues, solve social environmental problems and generate local economic development at the same time. With this video, we would like to introduce the work of Bintang Sejahtera, 2015 Sankalp award winner, which has managed to reduce 240 tons of plastic waste while creating new green job opportunities. In addition, Bintang Sejahtera has also been able to positively impact industry by offering a supply of good quality raw material at a much cheaper price compared to imported raw materials, creating additional benefits for the whole economy and the environment.

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXTgKM4Mc00

Stefano Colombu works with the Sankalp Forum team at Intellecap. He is deeply interested in innovations and start-ups. He enjoys playing basketball, trekking and understanding Indian culture, economy and society.