Reflections in the Rubbish: Seeing Our True Face in the Waste We Leave Behind
Oleh Herlian Eriska Putra (Researcher of Environmental and Clean Technology)
Every time I pass a pile of trash on the roadside, one sentence echoes in my mind. My late mentor, Professor Enri Damanhuri, once said, "Waste is not a technical problem; it is a problem of character". That sentence makes me feel as though I am looking into a mirror. Those heaps are no longer just filth; they are the most honest portrait of our civilization. Waste never lies; it records exactly what we consume and what we squander, while the earth patiently accommodates it all. Today, that mirror shows us that we are slowly drowning. Our habit of hoarding, discarding, and forgetting has shaped how we view public spaces, including our rivers, which have been transformed from the cradles of civilization into victims of indifference.