It is sad to know that the footprints of the most intelligent creature on the Earth are plastic, waste, garbage and clutter. There is hardly any place across the world that doesn’t see a huge load of unmanned trash spread by humans.
However, among the many who think keeping the neighbourhood clean isn’t their responsibility, there are some who believe that it’s important to keep our home clean no matter who is responsible for the improper dumping of waste.
Hence, to divert the attention of the people in his community towards the increasing clutter in the city and beaches in Parepare, Indonesia, this cafe worker Rudi Hartono decided to dress up as a Marvel Comics superhero, reported NDTV.
But why? Well, he dressed in the red and blue Spider-Man costume and donned a mask to bring everyone’s attention to the increasing pollution and persuade people to help pick up rubbish strewn on the streets.
“At first, I did the same activity without wearing this costume and it did not attract the public’s attention in order for them to join and help pick up trash. After wearing this costume, it turns out the public’s response was extraordinary,” said the 36-year-old.
Reports suggest that although Indonesia is the world’s fourth most populous country, there are still many parts of the country that don’t have organised public services to deal with the trash. This results in the garbage and plastic waste in particular that ends up in local water bodies.
However, at first, Rudi wore the costume just to amuse his nephew. But later when people saw him picking clutter wearing the outfit, they took notice of him. The café worker usually collects waste in his Spider-Man getup before hitting work at 7 pm. His unusual way of clearing the rubbish in the vicinity has helped highlight the country’s waste issue.
Reports indicate that the city of Parepare alone produces around 2.7 tonnes of waste. It is also estimated that Indonesia is the world’s second-largest producer of plastic pollutants in the oceans after China.
Hence, people in the country are looking for comprehensive measures to handle the waste. “We need a creative role model to foster society’s active engagement in protecting the environment,” said Saiful Bahri, a resident of Parepare in southwest Sulawesi.
Rudi also hopes that the government will put efforts to clean up trash and come up with stern regulations on waste management, including single-use plastic bags.
He said:
“Minimising plastic waste is the most important thing to do because plastic is difficult to decompose.”
Well, waste management and efficient disposal of plastic waste is a grave concern across the globe. Hope people are vigilant enough to stop spreading waste while the authorities look for alternative ways to manage the ever-increasing mountain of garbage.
Kudos to Rudi for doing whatever it took to bring everybody’s attention on the issue that his country is dealing with.