“We are in a bottleneck of overpopulation and wasteful consumption that could push half of Earth’s species to extinction in this century.”
- E.O. Wilson, entomologist and conservationist (1929-2021) -
The Researchers
The Mentors
Step 1: Identifying Globally Significant Issues
Step 2: Determining Timing and Time Frame
Our Collaborative Meeting
Step 3: Engaging Support From The Learning Community
Fieldtrip to Dinas Kependudukan dan Catatan Sipil Jakarta Selatan
To be able to achieve those success criteria, we gained information from 4 resources. First, we visited Dinas Kependududkan dan Catatan Sipil Jakarta Selatan. We were informed that the population in South Jakarta is 2,235,606, and it is not considered overpopulated. South Jakarta ranks third in population after East Jakarta and West Jakarta. We also learned that every citizen must be registered at the Civil Registration Office (Disdukcapil) to make it easier to manage administrative matters and to access public services. In addition, we learned that population growth can cause several problems, such as the spread of diseases, unequal access to education, difficulty finding jobs, increased criminal activity, and an overflow of waste production.
Fieldtrip to Dinas Lingkungan Hidup DKI Jakarta
After that, we visited the Environmental Agency (Dinas Lingkungan Hidup) of DKI Jakarta. found out that most of the waste in Jakarta is organic waste, especially leftover food. The government has carried out several waste management programs, such as promoting the 4Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle, replace) in collaboration with private sectors and by using maggots. Maggots are fly larvae that can help break down organic waste effectively and later be used as compost fertilizer, the most effective one is maggot from Black Soldier Fly.
Interview Owner of Kedai Hai Nam Gu
Third, we visited Kedai Hai Nam Gu and interviewed the owner, Mrs. Ratih Hehuwat. We learned that many restaurants and hotels produce a lot of organic waste from overproduction and find it difficult to manage. Mrs. Ratih joins with an app program called Surplus, which helps her restaurants and stores sell safe-to-eat surplus food at a lower price instead of throwing it away. Surplus is a platform that connects businesses with customers to reduce food waste, support zero waste initiatives, and even organize food donations to those in need. We also tried ordering food through Surplus, and it tasted even better because we got it for half the price!
Are you curious about Surplus App? Want to eat delicious food in a cheaper price? Please click link below to know more about Surplus App!
Interview Practitioner of Minimalist Mom
Lastly, we interviewed Kak Visya. Kak Visya is a minimalist lifestyle practitioner and a member of the Minimalist Mom Indonesia community. From her, we learned that living minimally requires self-control so that we can prioritize what we need over what we want. A minimalist lifestyle helps us produce less waste and avoid stress. We also learned new mindsets, such as changing “You Only Live Once” (YOLO) and “Fear of Missing Out” (FOMO) — where people tend to follow trends and buy viral items — into “You Only Need One” (YONO) and “Joy of Missing Out” (JOMO). If more people adopted this kind of mindset, waste production would be greatly reduced.
Step 4: Organizing Learning & Experiment
After meeting with experts and gaining new knowledge, we became curious and conducted our own research to find the connection between population growth and the amount of waste produced. We did this by measuring the waste at home and at school. We found that Obelixa, who lives with 9 people at home, produced 23 kg of waste in 7 days. Meanwhile, Rayyan, who has the highest number of people living in his house, did not produce much waste because most of the people there do not eat or spend much time at home.
At school, we discovered that the canteen area produces an average of 13 kg of organic waste every day, with around 750 people using the canteen daily.
From our experiment, we can answer our research question “by more people can produce more waste, but habits are important too.” Places like the school canteen with many people create a lot of waste every day for overconsumption. This shows that both population and consumption behavior impact the environment.
Step 5: Monitoring The Exhibition
Posters
Storybook
