Eco-Friendly Recycled Orange Coasters (Set of 4) - Orange Circles

Artisan Organization: Yayasan Kaki Kita

Country: Bali & Java

Yayasan Kaki Kita was initiated by two people, I Made Aditiasthana and Beni Ariadi.

"My name is I Made Aditiasthana. I am a nurse for patients with diabetic wounds. Every day I see patients with diabetic wounds. Most of them come from poor families. In fact, 10% of patients with diabetic wounds are at risk for amputation. This brought me together with Beni Ariadi, a prosthetic leg maker. Beni Ariadi is a friend who I have known for a long time; he is the son of a prosthetic limb maker, who then passed on this ability to him. Fate seems to have brought the two of us together.

"Most of the patients we serve are in difficult economic situations. So we both agreed to create a foundation to carry out our work and mission: Yayasan Kaki Kita. Literally, Yayasan in English is Foundation. Kaki means feet, and Kita means us. Yayasan Kaki Kita was established in October 2019 in Sukasada, Buleleng, in north Bali.

"Then the question arose: how to make prosthetic legs at a low cost? Armed with the knowledge we have, we process plastic waste into prosthetic limbs. We conducted several experiments between March and October 2020. However, in the processing, it turned out not only to produce prosthetic legs but also plastic boards. In this era of social media, everything we produce is always an opportunity. It turns out that the plastic boards received quite a lot of attention on social media. So we decided to form a business unit engaged in the processing of plastic waste. It does not only aim for profit, but also produces work that can empower people with disabilities. So far, this effort has empowered 4 people with disabilities.

"The journey did not go as smoothly as planned. Disabled empowerment is not always a profitable option in a business. The limitations of mobility and an effective and safe division of labor for them should also be taken into consideration. Thankfully, our community and business unit were founded in a year when people started to care about plastic waste. There are many plastic waste processing banks in every village. So, we have never had a problem with the supply of raw materials. The greatest difficulty in raw materials supply that we experienced was usually about the cleanliness of the processed waste and color sorting. We can also collect and buy plastic waste at a higher price directly from the scavengers. Of course, that makes them more enthusiastic about collecting and sorting plastic waste. That is the wider impact created by Yayasan Kaki Kita.

"So far we have only been able to empower 4 people with disabilities and 4 other workers. We still have to employ a team with normal physical abilities, because there are heavy jobs that cannot be done by people with disabilities. Processing shredded plastic into plastic boards requires a lot of energy and works with a heated engine. For this reason, we very much welcome cooperation with Novica, so that our disabled workers can do color sorting and finishing jobs. Typically in retail, recycled plastic products are priced higher than other products in general because of the long process. However, we believe that the recycled products that we produce will have a place in the hearts of customers because each product has a long story in the process and is produced by people with disabilities who are not easily discouraged." "