Photo: Wolfgang Hasselmann | Unsplash
The COVID-19 pandemic years has hit Balinese tourism hard, but a local non-profit group, the Bali Plastic Exchange, is helping by exchanging rice for plastic trash that is then sold to a recycling company. Rice costs about 15,000-20,000 rupiah ($1.05-1.40) per kg and a family of four consumes about two kg per day, so the trade is worth the effort. Founded in May last year by I Made Janur Yasa, who wanted to feed communities in Bali while improving the environment, the exchange has helped support about 40,000 families in 200 villages, while recycling nearly 600 tons (544 tonnes) of plastic waste. "This program has been very well received by community members," said Yasa, who hopes to expand it to other provinces in Indonesia, which is the world's second biggest contributor of plastic pollutants in the oceans.
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