Johannes Simatupang
IPMI International Business School
Amelia Naim Indrajaya
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Turning paper-based waste into valuable products. Lots of paper-based waste from company or other organizations are not managed well. With simple machine and method, paper-based waste could be transformed into paper-based valuable products. Nara Kreatif founder, with his education background as a mechanical engineer, designed and built machine to produce the paper-based products.
Paper-based product sales, support school education and residence (dormitory) fees of abandoned and homeless children. The founder is concerned about the abandoned and homeless children in Jakarta. He wants to help them so that they could live independently in the middle of society. So at the Nara Kreatif, he is teaching and training them on how to produce the paper-based products and how to sell it.
Nara Kreatif's major activity is turning paper based waste into valuable products. Initially they bought and collected waste paper from industry (e.g. banks, education institutions, etc). The collected waste paper was then processed into pulp and made into recycled paper. Recycled paper was then processed and designed into wallpaper, souvenir, drop box, paper bag, etc.
Nara Kreatif also manages a dormitory for abandoned and homeless children. These children are provided shelter and are given a proper education to be able to live independently in the community. In addition to proper education, they are given job training in support of processing paper waste into recycled paper and other derivative products.
Initially, industry partners saw Nara Kreatif as a transactional business partner and were only interested in the resale of their final products, however, as they learned more about Nara Kreatif's social mission & core business activities, these partners became inspired – they wanted to have CSR Cooperation program with Nara Kreatif. So they offered Nara Kreatif waste paper for free and willfully bought Nara Kreatif products for their own purposes. Today, Nara Kreatif collaborates extensively with its industry partners.
In addition to supporting abandoned children, Nara Kreatif also provides other people in local community access to free education. They offer free school education packets (in bahasa indonesia "SekolahKejar Paket A/B/C") to anyone who wants to improve themselves through good education. They also offer creative printing services, creative sewing services, loans and guidance for foster children who want to start a new business.
Recently, they have developed their business with other activities, such as green education and earthworm cultivation. Green education means cooperation with education agencies, colleges, universities, etc., in managing paper waste from students as a by-product in teaching and learning process. Nara Kreatif offers the paper waste will be managed and used to make a toga hat (graduation hat) which will be needed for college or university at the graduation ceremony.
"Nara Kreatif is established to help people ...[by] turning paper based waste into valuable products... [and] to support shelter and education for abandoned and homeless children...", said founder, Nezatullah Ramadhan (Neza).
Neza, founded Nara Kreatif to help abandoned children by giving them a place to live and a free school in the hope that someday they could live independently in society/community. He saw paper waste management as a way of supporting the virtuous enterprise.
With a strong determination, after graduating from college in 2012, Neza succeeded in getting funding from the campus but at the risk of his diplomas as collateral. At first, with the funding from campus, Neza designed and built machines for processing waste paper into recycled paper products and later made useful products from it. With the fund, Neza also rented a house as a home for abandoned and homeless children.
But the fund, over time, was unable to support Neza's social activities. For the first years (2012 -2013), he succeeded to make products but could not sell it. But he never gave up. Instead, Neza sought help from local banks in the form of loans to continue his work. It was at this time that one of the officer in one of the banks, suggested that Neza should make a foundation which would have access to funding for social activities through the bank's CSR program. So in 2013, Neza managed to build a foundation, Nara Kreatif Foundation, as a home for abandoned and homeless children, and because of this, he earn money from banks as CSR program. But Neza didn't stop there, he continue to expand it with cooperation with other company. Through word-of-mouth help and news coverage in the media, Nara Kreatif is increasingly recognized among industry and society.
After Neza set up the Foundation, from that time he got blessed from God, and many companies made partnership with his foundation. These industry partners gave their own paper waste for free and agreed to buy Nara Kreatif products. Today Nara Kreatif Foundation succeeds by selling these products to support their dormitory and their activities. Nara Kreatif has also been able to provide support and encouragement for people around the community who need social assistance, especially good education.
Communities around the location of Nara Kreatif also get a positive impact, where Nara Kreatif also have routine social events, such as Nara Education - Inspiration Class, the event in cooperation with partners or celebrities for school children in motivating them in the good education; Nara Health, which is health counseling program for the community; then Nara Clean, that is the clean-up event with society/community around Nara house.
Nara Kreatif's core business activities help to manage paper waste in the community and, via the Nara Clean program, help to engage community members directly in enabling a cleaner environment.
Nara Kreatif's work has provided abandoned and homeless children shelter and a life off the street. It has provided them access to education and an opportunity to earn income by helping produce and sale their paper-based product to the industry. The overall impact is to improve the quality of community health and well being.
Nara Kreatif produces valuable products from waste that can be sold to industry. Sales of such products have enabled Nara Kreatif to survive from 2013 till now and its collaboration with industry has helped transform company CSR funds to good social and environmental support activities. Nara Kreatif expects to increase the number of industry partners and add cooperation with educational institutions, such as universities and colleges.
In terms of business aspect, the training on how to turning paper based waste into valuable products helps the employees in Nara Kreatif to make a useful products from paper based waste. This training is good for business of Nara Kreatif. More employee have capabilities its means that more chance Nara Kreatif to survive in the future.
Paper waste is well managed and therefore the amount of waste in the community or surrounding environment are reduced. The environment becomes cleaner.
Nara Kreatif's work has provided 19 abandoned and homeless children shelter and a life off the street. They and others around, also have opportunity to get better education (150 people). Until now there have been 2 classes of graduate who have graduated with the title of public certificate. Three people have continued their scholarship into college.
Its collaboration with industry has helped to increase local awareness and use of green products.
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