Mahasiswa KKN UGM Ajak Masyarakat Bersih Pantai Bacan Halmahera Selatan
Mahasiswa KKN UGM Ajak Masyarakat Bersih Pantai Bacan Halmahera Selatan
Students of UGM Community Service Program (KKN-PPM) in Bacan, South Halmahera, North Maluku organized a beach cleanup program along Bacan Islands on Saturday (7/17).
The beach cleanup program performed with Bacan community became one of the KKN programs as an awareness of the importance of building harmony with nature, especially beach and sea. It is because the area has become the heart of the local community.
Unit coordinator, Raka Kusuma, explained that the coastal community awareness towards environmental hygiene is still relatively low. They are not concerned about coastal and marine conditions.
“In fact, the lives of Tanjung Obit and Prapakanda villagers depend on the beaches,” he said in a release received on Tuesday (7/17).
Low marine awareness is evident in the community’s littering behavior. Most people dump their household wastes into the sea.
“They reasoned that it is simpler and easier to throw the waste away into the sea.”
Concerned about the issue, Raka felt the need to increase awareness of the importance of coastal area preservation as part of the sustainable development principle.
Prior to the cleanup, Vice Regent of South Halmahera, Iswan Hasjim, S.T., M.T., took the time to visit the KKN-PPM location in Tanjung Obit and Prapakanda. Iswan appreciated the various programs run by the students. He hoped that they can be a catalyst for Bacan community development.
The community service program in Bacan runs between semesters in 2018 from June 23 to August 10, 2018. The team consists of 30 students from different faculties who stay and settle with people in Bacan Islands for 7-8 weeks to implement their planned programs.