Indonesian library creates literacy from litter

Purbalinga, Nov. 9 (BUS): A librarian on the island of Java, Indonesia, is lending children books in exchange for the trash they collect in a new way to clean up the environment and get kids to read more.

Every day of the week, Radin Roro-Hendarty rides her three-wheeled cart with books stacked in the back for children in the village of Montang to replace the plastic cups, bags, and other trash she’s carrying.

She told Reuters that it helps instill reading in children and educate them about the environment. Once she arrives, young children, many accompanied by their mothers, surround her “library of rubbish” and demand books.

They’re all carrying trash bags, and Raden’s three-wheeled cart is quickly filling up as books come out. She is glad that kids will be spending less time playing online games as a result.

“Let’s build a literacy culture from a young age to mitigate the damage done to the online world,” Radin said. “We must also take care of our waste in order to combat climate change and save the earth from garbage,” Radin said, according to Reuters.

She collects about 100 kg (220 lb) of waste each week, which is then sorted by her colleagues and sent for recycling or sale. It has a stock of 6000 books to borrow and wants to move its mobile service to nearby areas as well.

Kevin Haptic, an avid reader of 11 years, searches for trash found in the village.

“When there is a lot of trash, our environment will become dirty and unhealthy,” he says. “That’s why I look for trash to borrow a book.”

Jah Paluppi, head of the district’s main public library, said Radin’s work complements their efforts to combat online gaming addiction among youth and promote reading.

The literacy rate for those over 15 in Indonesia is around 96%, but a September report by the World Bank warned that the pandemic would leave more than 80% of 15-year-olds below the minimum level of reading proficiency defined by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

HF