In celebration of the 74th Independence Day of the Republic of Indonesia, Alor youth from various communities celebrated by looking back at nature and the surrounding environment through market and beach clean-ups. Market and beach cleanup activities were carried out in two locations; Kadelang Market and Bungawaru Beach, East Kalabahi Village, Kalabahi City. This location was chosen because based on data from the 2019 Plastic Free Ocean Network (PFON) plastic waste data collection network, the largest amount of coastal waste was found in this location. This movement is called "Clean Land, Love the Beach, Facing the Sea 2.0", as a form of participation in the Facing the Sea 2.0 activity initiated by the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the Republic of Indonesia and communities and volunteers throughout Indonesia.

A total of 20 youth communities, religious communities, 9 elementary to higher education institutions, 7 youth religious communities, and 2 other institutions/organizations in Alor joined this movement.

There were 186 participants in total who participated in the "Alor Youth Clean Land, Love the Beach, Face the Sea 2.0" activity at Kadelang Beach last Friday (08/16/2019). In collaboration with the Alor Regency Environment Office and UPT Pasar, as well as terminal administrators - UPT Transportation, the activity initiated by Plastic Free Ocean Network (PFON) Alor, KNPI DPD Alor Regency and Alor Siap Beraksi (KASI) Community for 2.5 hours managed to collect 2,038 kg (2 tons) of waste. If calculated further, waste from the market accounts for approximately 65% of the total domestic and non-domestic waste in Alor Regency. Based on the results of the study of the construction of the Alor landfill by the Ministry of Public Works team of NTT Province in 2018, an average of 0.49 kg of waste is generated per person - every day.

In a series of activities to face the sea, a waste-free socialization was also carried out by Putri Pariwisata Alor 2019. Support and invitation to live clean, as well as sorting waste into organic and inorganic was also carried out by the Kenarilang Health Center. Various statements supporting environmental sustainability were also expressed by participants from the Family Hope Program, through the Alor Clean One Meter Movement.

The PFON Alor team also explained the dangers of plastic waste for human life, mainly because plastic waste if fused with nature, both on land and sea, can break down into small components, called microplastics. These components, if accumulated in the body, are carcinogenic or toxic. The same thing can also happen if the smoke from burning plastic waste is inhaled by humans.

A further Facing the Sea activity was also held in the coastal area of RT 01 Bungawaru, East Kalabahi Village on Sunday (18/8/2019). "We are very happy with this activity, the community and the RT welcomed this community service," explained Daud, Head of RT 01 / RW 001. There were more than 56 people from the Bungawaru community and the Alor youth community involved that afternoon. Bungawaru Beach has become an 'estuary' every day because it receives garbage from the Bungawaru river, the sewers behind the shops, and garbage carried from the sea to the beach. During the afternoon activity, participants managed to collect 1,883.5 kg of waste.

The waste collected in the Menghadap Laut activity was directed to be separated based on the categories of recyclable and recyclable plastic waste. Once collected, the waste was delivered by the committee team to the Muamar Waste Processing Group. "One of the solutions, we can send the recyclable waste to Muamar waste processing group for further processing," explained Faryda Veronica Lamma Kolly, PFON Alor Coordinator from Tribuana University Kalabahi.

In Alor itself, the Menghadap Laut movement, which is a collaboration between youth communities, emerged from an awareness of the increasingly polluted environment. With more parties involved every year, it is hoped that more parties can contribute and find better waste management solutions. In addition, Alor's policy needs to develop a waste management Master Plan and Jakstrada document and technically a TPS 3R mechanism needs to be built at the sub-district level. All for the realization of a sustainable and beautiful Alor Regency, so that it remains a food barn and NTT's 'Paradise in the Eastern Sun'.