We are all heroes

“We are all heroes” is a personal project which reflects the plastic waste problem in Indonesia and the ability we have as humans to take action to change it.

The idea of this project came up in 2018 and it’s still open.

The project is divided in two parts: in one hand we have the problem, with some street photos documenting the plastic we can find on the streets. In the other hand we have the solution, people and organizations, such as Trash Hero, who take action on this matter and educate people organizing weekly clean ups.

I had the chance to document Trash Hero labor to carry out the project.

I don’t want to critique the Indonesian culture with this project. The plastic waste problem in Bali is the reflection of the society, the world’s consume habits and lifestyle, which are influenced by big companies. A huge part of the plastic waste we can find in Indonesia is imported by developed countries, even though this action is already illegal.

Indonesia is formed by more than 15000 island. This is other reasons why it’s not easy to find a proper plastic waste management. Also, tourism has a huge impact on the islands because it receives more tourists every year and it’s not prepared to manage it. The solution nowadays is just burning the plastic.

Finally, education has a fundamental role to raise awareness about our actions. This is why there are organizations like Trash Hero Indonesia which try to educate people with concrete actions such as weekly plastic pick ups.

This project invites to change and a self-reflection.