World · East Asia & Pacific · 15 hrs ago
Women in West Papua turn kitchen waste into fertiliser for home gardens
Twenty women in Tamoge, Teluk Wondama, are learning to make fertiliser from household waste with help from the University of Indonesia’s Patriot Expedition team.
The community is in West Papua, about four hours from the nearest city, Wasior.
Poor soil and the high cost of farming supplies had made growing vegetables difficult for residents who wanted to plant at home.
The women turn fruit and vegetable scraps into a liquid called eco-enzyme, and mix other organic waste with dry leaves to make compost.
They are now planting chillies, tomatoes, eggplants and mustard greens in their yards without relying on costly chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
The team’s support also addresses a local gap, as residents had not received guidance on waste management from the environmental office.
Participants hope to share what they have learned, while officials say the expedition should leave communities with practical, lasting benefits.
Twenty women in Tamoge, Teluk Wondama, are learning to turn kitchen waste and leaves into fertiliser for home gardens.
The project was run by the University of Indonesia’s Patriot Expedition Team.
Participants make eco-enzyme from fruit and vegetable scraps, and compost from organic waste that cannot be used for eco-enzyme.
They have begun growing chillies, tomatoes, eggplants and mustard greens without relying on costly chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
The initiative responds to poor soil fertility and the high cost of farming supplies.
- Who
- Twenty women from Tamoge took part in the support programme, led by the University of Indonesia’s Patriot Expedition Team.
- What
- They learned to make eco-enzyme from kitchen scraps and compost from leaves and other organic waste.
- When
- Not stated
- Where
- Tamoge, in Teluk Wondama, West Papua, at Settlement Units 1 and 2 in the Werianggi Transmigration Area.
- Why
- Residents were keen to grow vegetables but faced poor soil fertility and expensive farming supplies.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Tamoge residents were eager to grow vegetables but faced poor soil fertility and expensive farming supplies.
The Patriot Expedition Team taught 20 women to make eco-enzyme and compost from household organic waste.
Participants began planting chillies, tomatoes, eggplants and mustard greens in their yards.
- Participants
- 20 women from Settlement Units 1 and 2 in Tamoge
- Eco-enzyme ingredients
- 100 grams of brown sugar, 1 litre of water and 300 grams of chopped organic waste
- Fermentation period
- Three months in a tightly closed container kept in a shaded place
- Crops
- Chillies, tomatoes, eggplants and mustard greens
- Nearest town
- Wasior, about four hours from Tamoge
What people are saying
Now household waste is no longer thrown away. After the younger team members came, we processed the waste to nourish plants in our yards and also reduce dirt.
Residents are very enthusiastic about growing vegetables if they are supported, but the soil is not fertile enough.