Innovation

Tri was called to do something for her environment, because in her neighborhood, the activities that empower communities and have a positive impact on the environment were still very minimal. "I was compelled to invite the housewives around my house to do something for the environment, by managing their household waste and make creative handicrafts from waste that were usually thrown away, so that it can be useful and generate income to help the needs of the family," said Mrs Tri, quoting her motivation for doing the business.

Initially Mrs. Tri invites the housewives to create the handicraft on the terrace of her house (now has become the production workshop) with the initial capital obtained from borrowing cash from the Neighborhood Association. Tri, since her childhood loves to do creative work from paper material. She uses the used paper from her children unused school textbooks that had accumulated in the house. Every household needs these handicraft products, in the form of ladies bag, mat, fruit place, tissue place, the food hood, mineral water place, lamp hanger, and even small living room table.

To support the needs of used papers as raw material, Mrs. Tri establishing and managing the Trash Bank named "Garbage Bank Tri Alam Lestari" in front of her house. So that she doesn't need to buy these raw materials. People come to the Waste/Trash Bank to save or deposit the already sorted trashes. In this Trash Bank, weighing and recording is done once a week. After a certain period, the bank's customers can take their savings, which could be in the form of cash money or can be exchanged with the goods /principal needs. "With these garbage bank, the mothers become more responsible in terms of handling their garbage. For example, in the event of routine mothers' gathering, when the gathering is over, the venue become clean right away, because instead of littering the environment, they prefer to take home their trash to be sorted further and deposit them to the Trash Bank," said Mrs. Tri, quoting the most visible impact of the presence of her Trash Bank.

In addition, to create the clean, green, and convenient environment, which will attract consumers to come to her workshop, Tri also initiated the greening action by planting green plants in the narrow lands surrounding her workshop, which previously was dry and neglected. She named these area as "Tri Puspa Sari Greening Garden".

Currently, Mrs. Tri business already gained recognition from local and central government. At the provincial level, some significant achievements are as follows:
1. 1st Winner for the DKI Jakarta Women Empowerment (2014)
2. 1st Winner for Greening the Narrow Land in DKI Jakarta (2015)

With above achievements, Mrs.Tri was invited the Governor of Jakarta to his official house, in order to become ambassadors of the Office of Industry Jakarta to help teach and empower women in the Flats in Jakarta.

At the national level, in 2016 Mrs. Tri got a mandate from the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries as ambassadors to raise awareness to the community on the coast not to throw garbage into the sea and pollute the ocean. Mrs. Tri share and training them to utilize and take advantage of what usually thrown away into more valuable and useful goods. Her effort and activities are then written in the official book of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

As a form of gratitude for her achievements, Mrs.Tri provides free training to anyone who is interested to learn to make handicrafts from the paper in her workshop. In addition, she also founded the "Tri Bakti Pertiwi Read House" near his home to stimulate interest in reading and improving the knowledge of local people. Books at Read House were gained creatively, where the free training participants are asked to bring at least 1 used book that is still eligible to be donated to the Reading House.
"I want other people to also feel my happiness and success, although it is only slightly. I believe that the more knowledge I share to others, then I will get even more kindness. That's the promise of GOD to us," said Mrs. Tri, describing her motivation in doing all the good things above.

Today Menik-Menik products have been sold widely in various malls in Jakarta and Mrs. Tri regularly participated in handicraft exhibitions and bazaars, both provincial and national levels. For the future Mrs. Tri still have ideals that have not been reached. "My dream is to bring Indonesia's name into the international scene through the products of handicraft made of rubbish but beautiful. Beside that, I hope that someday my village can be included in the National recycled craft tourist destinations," said Mrs. Tri, quoting her future goals.

Inspiration

4 things that inspire Mrs. Tri to conduct the business of making the goods - household goods from used paper are:

1. The desire to improve the village environment ;
2. Lack of a positive and productive activities for housewives around Mrs. Tri. Where the mothers can only gossip and complain over the lack of monthly money from their husbands;
3. The used paper from her children unused school textbooks that had accumulated in the house; and
4. Her childhood hobby in doing creative work from paper material.

"With this event I hope the mothers could have positive activities and as a bonus hopefully it can increase family income," said Mrs. Tri, quoting her purpose of empowering the mothers' community in the business.

Her business had inspired the City Administration and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the Republic of Indonesia which then asked her to become their ambassador in helping educate and empower mothers in the Flats in Jakarta and provide awareness to the people on the coastal areas to utilize and take advantage of the garbage rather than throw them into the sea and pollute the ocean.

Overall impact

Menik-Menik has set a good example of how to run the socio-preneurship business.

Starting with a personal passion and environmental concern of the founder, the business then empowered communities (mainly housewives) through its business activities, both in upstream side (in the form of trash banks) and in the downstream side (in the form of the manufacture and sale of handicraft products from recycled trash).

Related to SDG, the business support at least 6 goals, those are:

1. Quality Education : By opening "Tri Bakti Pertiwi Read House" as an extension of the business benefit, Mrs. Tri has provided an opportunity for local communities to increase knowledge.
2. Gender Equality : By empowering mothers (housewives) as workers and give free training to them, the business provide the gender equality in the aspect of livelihood and as a source of family income
3. Reduced Inequalities : One of Menik-Menik's workers, namely Ms. Wiji, is a deaf and speech impaired person who can not speak and hear. But with strong determination this time Ms Wiji has a Quality Control role in the Business.
4. Responsible consumption and Production : With the sorting of waste in the garbage bank system, people become more responsible in managing what they consume and what they produce and/or throw away.
5. Life below water : In his role as an ambassador for the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Mrs Tri socialization and training to coastal communities to take advantage of what they had been thrown into the sea becomes more valuable and useful items. This reduces the pollution of the sea and maintain the sustainability of the life below the water.
6. Life on Land : With the Trash Bank and the Greening of Narrow Lands conducted by the founder, automatically it can protecting the environment and the sustainability of the life on land.

Business benefit

The surrounding community gets extra income and the business itself grows positively. Now the revenue is reaching nearly tens of millions rupiah per month and keeps growing.

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Social and environmental benefit

Currently Menik – Menik is employing 6 craftsmen (most of them are housewives) from surrounding area.

The awareness towards environmental issue of the people has improved in the form of cleanliness, more concern on hygiene and awareness to stop littering the environment.

"I run this business with good faith, and I am happy to give happiness to people in need. I really believe that God will help me to overcome all the challenges or obstacles. That's the promise of GOD," said Mrs. Tri as her closing remarks.

Interview

Tri Sugiarti Purnomo, Founder

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