Indonesia
Ministry of Social and Environment BEM Faculty of Cultural Studies (FCS) Universitas Brawijaya (UB) has carried out a work programme called Trasheroes on Saturday (3/18/2023) in the FCS A building. Trasheroes actions aim to raise sense of sensitivity and concern for the public, especially students, to love the environment around them by cleaning it from trash.
Trasheroes may sound uncommon to the readers’ minds. Generally, Trasheroes are from English, “trash” and “heroes”. Trasheroes is the first programme from the Ministry of Social and Environment Student Executive Board FCS UB to overcome waste problems in Malang City.
The Trasheroes action has the theme “GUARDIAN OF THE EARTH: Be a Hero and Dispose Your Trash” means to be a hero who protects the earth and takes care of it by cleaning up trash and disposing trash in its place.
This activity was formed because students were concerned about the effects of environmental degradation, such as floods, pollution, and disease. So far, Trasheroes had been held once and will be held again in May 2023.
In the first session, they collected various types of waste in form of plastic, metal, glass, food packaging, paper, and books. Trasheroes collaborates with several coffee shops for waste collecting and the Malang Garbage Bank (BSM) for final destination of the collected waste to be sold there.
BSM is a cooperative legal institution located at Jalan S. Supriadi No.38 A, Sukun, Kec. Sukun, Malang, East Java. Its establishment was facilitated by the Municipal Government of Malang through the Sanitation and Landscaping Department to assist community empowerment action in household waste management. BSM also fosters, trains, assists, and markets the results of waste processing. They also provide workshops, internships, and recycled waste craft training.
The forms of Trasheroes activities include 1) distributing posters aimed at students so that they donate waste from boarding houses or houses. If students feel confused about the trash heap where they live, students can donate it to Trasheroes; 2) The opening of trash collection points at several points in FCS UB. Garbage donations have criteria, such as plastic, metal, glass, and paper waste; 3) Apart from collecting trash on campus, Trasheroes also looks for trash at several coffee shops (Andhap Ansor, Warung Tepi Sungai, and Ko.Boy); 4) Trasheroes opens volunteers where FCS UB students join to collect and deposit garbage; 5) Finally, after all the waste has been successfully collected into waste plastics based on their type, Trasheroes goes to BSM to deposit the waste as well as sell it. All waste weighed 41 kg.
“The purpose of carrying out this activity is to provide an understanding to the public, especially students, about sensitivity and concern for the natural environment and creating a clean environment. Most importantly, the deposit of selling the waste distributed as scholarship to help FCS UB students who are experiencing economic constraints in pursuing education,” said Daffa Khaidar Novriko, the Chief Executive of Trasheroes.
“Through this programme, we hope that the spirit of public concern, especially students, can increase waste cleaning activities, awareness of environmental cleanliness, and helping others,” he concluded. [trans.dts/ed.Vidya/PR FCS]