We are delighted to share a blog written by student Marco Sie from British School Jakarta, who is part of a team delivering a Global Goals project for the 2019-20 Global Goals Competition.
Their project is among over 957 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community.
Challenging and trying most of the time, but bearing rewards great enough to make the time and effort worthwhile.
Project Overview
Wealth inequality is a big issue in Indonesia, one that is ever more prominent in a heavily urbanized city like Jakarta. Along the outskirts of the city, a short drive away from our international school is Bulaken shanty; it is built atop a landfill. In this shanty, the children are often left unattended as their parents spend backbreaking hours collecting trash to earn barely enough to feed the family. With their time and energy completely spent on getting by, the children are often malnourished and lack access to proper education.
After just one visit to the Shanty, we knew that the community was one that was in desperate help. The situation was dire, and we decided to take it upon ourselves to help them through any means necessary.
Our Journey
The hardest part of the process was the beginning. It was hard for us to come up with a solution that would make a lasting impact and eventually grant the members of the shanty complete independence of any help we give them. A couple of weeks after the visit to the shanty, our team decided to try and build a “common area” for the shanty members to congregate, one that could also be used as an educational space for the children to learn by day and storage space by night. With this idea in mind, we decided to go ahead and begin making architectural designs, getting in touch with non-profit organizations and contacting contractors.
The Next Chapter
So far, we’ve managed to fully complete the architectural designs and are currently working with contractors in supplying the materials needed for our initiative. We’ve also managed to get in touch with Plasticpay, an organization that collects plastic bottles in exchange for “rewards”, as our design mainly focuses on sustainability and environmental friendliness towards the shanty’s surroundings in the long run.
Social Media Channels
The 2019-20 GSL Global Goals Competition is now open and runs until June 2020. If you belong to one of the 700+ teams of students currently delivering a social action project as part of the competition we would love to hear from you and feature your blog and project photos on our website to inspire others.
