Trisakti to go ahead with its `Clean up the World'

JAKARTA (JP): Despite a lack of support from the government and the people, Trisakti University intends to go ahead with its three-day "Clean up the World" program aimed at motivating environmental consciousness among Jakartans.

"The preparations we made last year were better because we worked closely with the West Jakarta administration, which oversees our main campus, and residents of the surrounding subdistricts," said Rector Moedanton Moertedjo yesterday.

At that time, the university joined the city administration's "one million trees" planting program and purchased two garbage trucks with money it received from the City Sanitation Office.

"But now, due to lack of funds we are sorry to say that we cannot afford to buy even one truck as we had hoped," said Idik Sulaeman, the university's deputy rector and head of the program's organizing committee.

Moedanton explained the "Clean up the World" program for this year, scheduled to be held from Friday to Sunday, as a "simple campaign, with the simple aim" of promoting individual awareness on the need for a cleaner environment.

"Any follow-up programs or evaluations are not supposed to be done only once a year but rather each day after the clean-up program is over...the impact cannot be felt that day," he said.

Moedanton admitted that monitoring results of the program has proven difficult and pointed out that "we just have to monitor ourselves."

Sponsored by the United Nations' Environmental Program (UNEP) and the EGBAR Foundation, this year's program, which is an extension of a similar one held last year, will continue to promote the motto of "Think Globally, Act Locally," he said.

The first two days will be used to distribute stickers, leaflets and posters containing environmentally friendly slogans to passing vehicles and offices around the university's campus.

On the third day, a mass cleaning campaign will be held on all six of the university's campuses, involving some 4,000 freshmen and senior students and staff of the university.

Other neighboring universities which will also take part in the program include the private Tarumanegara University, Krida Wacana Christian University and Indonusa Esa Unggul University.

The program, initiated by several people with public relations backgrounds shortly after the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, focused on encouraging individuals to participate in caring for the environment and convincing them that taking part in such an action is "simple, inexpensive and fun." (pwn)