Green Living Support

Green Living Support (GLS) is an environmental organization founded in 2019 in Surabaya, East Java by Onish Akshani, Yessy Yuliana Amalia, and Annitaqwa Istimagfiroh. Currently they are located in the Rungkut District of Surabaya City. Green Living Support aims to spread awareness regarding how communities can best work together to conserve the environment. The organization has also assisted the government in improving the quality of the local environment. To date, Green Living Support Community has 21 members and continues to grow.

 

 

The philosophy of GLS is Bumi sudah merawat kita dari awal, sehingga kita juga harus bisa merawat bumi kembali, which translates to “Since the beginning, the Earth has taken care of us, so we should also be able to take care of the Earth”. The actions of GLS in the community reflect these values. The focus is on providing what the community needs, not what the organization wants. Maintaining this focus has enabled GLS to stay on track as the world changes day to day.

Green Living Support is formed around three community pillars: study, action and business. Study focuses on giving society more opportunities to access environment-related issues through research, discussion and webinars. Action focuses on inviting communities to start a green lifestyle so that more people can contribute to preserving the environment. In order to facilitate this pillar, GLS holds several environment-related training sessions. Business means GLS acting as an intermediate in business-related projects. These projects must have some aspect that benefits the environment. One thing to note is that the money generated by these business projects does not go to their own coffers. Rather, GLS uses most of the money to serve the community and only a little is retained to keep the organization afloat.

One successful initiative in Surabaya by GLS has been to prohibit the usage of plastic bags in grocery stores. Through collaboration with the government to apply the new rule widely across the city, a real and lasting impact on the environment has been realized. Plastic pollution in Surabaya has been one of the most significant challenges in the region. The new rule means the environment in and around Surabaya has been significantly improved. At the start of the pandemic, most organizations found it difficult to make an impact due to limitations imposed on society to prevent the spread of COVID-19. However, GLS changed their approach and were able to make a contribution to the environment even as the pandemic swept across the nation. GLS began to host ecoliteracy webinars, addressing issues such as trash recycling, farming and campaigns that focused on aspects of a green lifestyle.

Our interviewee, Ms. Onish Akshani, is the Director of Green Living Support. Her role at GLS is to monitor every step that the organization takes. She also comes up with new ideas for the community to work with. Prior to her role at GLS, Ms. Akshani had years of experience in environment-related programs. She has gone on record on many occasions to express her concern at the condition of the environment in Indonesia. In order to make a positive impact to the environment, she has worked as both a community leader and volunteer in the past. With GLS, she finally decided to create a community of her own. Ms. Akshani started looking around for some people with the same passion for environmental conservation and together they founded the Green Living Support Community.

Interview

Interviewees
Ms. Onish Akshani – Director, Green Living Support

Q : What kind of organization is Green Living Support and how was it formed?

Onish: This organization was founded out of the concern of many friends who felt compelled to do something about environmental issues. My colleagues come from diverse backgrounds, including business and research. The initial concept came from one individual but it took three of us to get GLS off the ground. And now it is going from strength to strength.

Q : Can you elaborate on the “Three Pillars” of Green Living Support?

Onish: The three pillars are study/research, action and business. Many of us come to GLS from an economic background, the majority of the research we conduct is economic in nature, but is still related to the environment. We often collaborate with the government on research, so any progress we make can influence government policy. Surabaya, for example, has recently succeeded in eliminating the use of plastic bags in stores, largely as a result of our research. The business pillar, on the other hand, focuses on meeting the challenge of developing green business models that can compete with traditional industries.

Q : What initially attracted you to GLS and how long have you worked with the organization?

Onish: As I was the one that came up with the idea, I have been a part of GLS since the very beginning! So it’s been around 4 years. Before joining GLS, I was involved in environmental preservation work of various types for about ten years.

Q : What programs does GLS run?

Onish: One regular feature is hosting discussions on aspects of economic research as they pertain to the environment. We also have an education program about wild plants. We’re interested in this issue since wild plants are frequently treated as a problem and sprayed with pesticides while being overlooked as a beneficial source of nutrition. At least once a month we will hold a seminar on wild plants and their benefits for society. Unfortunately, our current routine has been disrupted because we have a book-writing project that is still ongoing and we are also engaged in project research, so our human resources are quite stretched at this moment in time. In addition, we also provide writing and research classes to our members so that they are able to contribute more.

Q : What has been the most memorable experience and/or challenge that you have faced since you founded GLS?

Onish: The most recent obstacle was when we first held an educational event about wild plants. The number of participants did not meet our expectations. This made us realize that there are still many people who are not interested in this topic. On the other hand, the most memorable experience so far was meeting people who have the same interests and concerns as me, even though we might come from different backgrounds. This has become a source of encouragement. In addition, another memorable experience was when we were able to host presentations from a writer and an activist which inspired many participants. I am very happy when I see that a speaker has been able to develop skills while sharing their knowledge.

Q: Is it possible to volunteer at Green Living Support? What does a volunteer do at GLS?

Onish: Of course, you are most welcome to volunteer at GLS! Everyone who has a passion and interest in environmental issues is welcome to join us. We do not have a complicated process for recruitment. If anyone is interested, just send in your CV and cover letter explaining your motivation, etc. and you will automatically be considered a member of Green Living Support. Volunteer activities are usually related to the events we hold. Some volunteers end up on the event committee or are asked to MC the event, depending on what we need. We also provide resources for volunteers, so that they can develop the skills and wherewithal to contribute to their local community. As a community, we want our volunteers to grow with us.

Q : What are the most common problems you’ve encountered when serving the community?

Onish: One issue we experience is the difficulty of finding participants when holding events. Actually, many are interested and want to join, but they want everything for free. On our side, we need money to pay for resources, people (speakers), and to meet our other costs.

Q : What does the future hold for Green Living Support?

Onish: One specific aim is to make Green Living Support a non-profit Foundation that is independent from donors. We are distinct from companies and enterprises because we have a mission to protect the environment. At this time, we are competing with conventional companies that do not care about the environment. My expectation for GLS is professionalism, especially in governance.

 

 

Reflections

Green Living Support aims to form a community of people who are aware of the importance of caring for and preserving the natural environment, as well as helping the government in its efforts to do the same. Aside from spreading awareness about environmental issues, one of the main aims of Green Living Support is to develop human resources for the future.

Green Living Support has an important and significant role to play in increasing awareness regarding environmental issues. This is already apparent in their efforts to work with the government in banning plastic bag usage in Surabaya, as well as their seminars on the benefits of wild plants.

Green Living Support has a long-term vision for our community and how it can work to preserve the environment for future generations.

References

Green Living Support. (n.d.). Green Living Support : Bumi Lestari Berkelanjutan.
Retrieved 17 July 2022 from https://www.greenlivingsupport.web.id/

Green Living Support. [@greenliving.support]. (n.d). Post [Instagram profile] Instagram. Retrieved 17 July 2022 from
https://www.instagram.com/greenliving.support/

Researchers

My name is Patrick Anderson and I am a student at the University of Surabaya (UBAYA), which I entered in 2020. I was born in Jakarta, Indonesia but I grew up in Surabaya. I’m currently majoring in Biotechnology and learning lots of fun stuff. I’m the kind of person that is hungry for knowledge and experiences. One thing that I like about Biotechnology, or science in general, is that there will always be innovation around the subject, something new to research and understand. YGRP is also a new experience for me and that’s why I was very excited to be a part of it. Meeting lots of new people with the same interests was fun and I am looking forward for more experiences like this in the future!

My name is Irene Santoso and I am a third-year psychology student at the University of Surabaya (UBAYA) in Indonesia. Currently, I live in Surabaya, but I was born and raised in Surakarta. I enjoy psychology because it changes my way of seeing the world. It struck me how much the past and our environment has on our lives. With regard to psychology, I’m most interested in the clinical field. Aside from being a university student, I spent my leisure time reading, watching movies, and spending time with friends and family.