By:

• Martina Rahmadani (Responsible Marine Business Officer, WWF-Indonesia)
• A.N Afid Nurkholid (KKN PPM UGM Kaledupa 2017)

There was something special that day, 22/04/17, in two locations in Wakatobi Regency, Southeast Sulawesi. Taduno Beach in Sombano Village, Kaledupa District and One Mbiha Beach, Darawa Village, South Kaledupa District became the center of a series of Environmental Earth Day (HBL) events.

The event was held jointly by the Wakatobi National Park Center, WWF-Indonesia, and students of the Real Work Lecture (KKN) of Community Empowerment Learning (PPM) of Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta in the Kaledupa Unit.

At Taduno Beach, the series of events opened with the symbolic installation of tree names by Mr. La Fasa, Head of the Kaledupa Region II SPTN Section, Wakatobi National Park Office and Mr. La Ode Folio, Head of Sombano Village. The installation of this tree name is one of the educational tools for the community and visitors to get to know the natural resources in Sombano better.

At least 142 people from various groups packed the Taduno Beach area, working together to clean the beach. The Taduno Monitoring Tourism Group, Kaledupa Nature Lovers Community (KPA), and Masyarakat Mitra POLHUT (MMP) that morning managed to collect 700 kg of waste. Both plastic and glass waste, as well as organic waste were collected in one place to facilitate the decomposition process. Likewise with glass and plastic waste, which is collected in one container to be disposed of at the location of the landfill that has been provided.

Earth Day was also commemorated by elementary and junior high school students in this island district. They made posters and colored pictures with environmental themes. This activity aims to educate early childhood, to start being aware of the environment by pouring their creativity through drawings.

"Keep the Coastal and Marine Ecosystems," read the poster made by one of the participants. "If we protect the coastal and marine ecosystems, then we will enjoy large fish and can see beautiful coral reefs," he explained smartly. Not to be left out of the beach cleanup and drawing competition, the women of Sombano Village also held a culinary festival of traditional Sombano food.

Meanwhile, One Mbiha Beach also enlivened Earth Day Environment with a clean beach and education about plastic waste processing for the Darawa Village community. The hope is that the amount of plastic waste can be reduced - and turn it into economic value.

Health checks were also one of the agendas followed by the entire community in Darawa Village, South Kaledupa. The main goal of this whole series of events is to make us all realize that preserving the earth can start from small things. From simple actions, will give birth to extraordinary things. From Kaledupa, for Indonesia.