Behn Meyer and Solar Chapter Collaborate on Water & Education Project for SMKN Sasitamean, Indonesia
As a member of the UN Global Compact, Behn Meyer Chemicals Indonesia is committed to implementing many possible strategies to become a business that supports sustainable development goals. As we look at the ways we can contribute back to society, we realise that there are many issues related to water and education in Indonesia, especially in remote areas that need to be given more attention to.
Thus, last year, Behn Meyer Chemicals Indonesia signed a collaboration proposal with Solar Chapter Melbourne Community to create better days for students at SMKN Sasitamean, East Nusa Tenggara. SMKN Sasitamean struggles to fulfil the daily and operational needs of 205 students and 33 school staff and teachers. The students need to procure water from a nearby spring twice daily to fulfil their essential needs for consumption and sanitation.
Besides the challenge of getting water for daily basic needs, the students also have limited access to technology in their village. Given how the digital age is enabling people to transcend boundaries and climb the socioeconomic ladder, this limitation could also hinder the students' future opportunities. This is why the Solar Chapter Melbourne Community proposed the Water & Education Project for SMKN Sasitamean. To improve education for Sasitamean, Solar Chapter collaborated with Yayasan Gerakan Indonesia Mengajar to create educational modules focusing on Computer Information Management. The modules consist of entrepreneurship topics and multimedia topics for students.
For water accessibility, Solar Chapter has also installed a permanent and solar-powered water pump to connect a water source from the school. The students are happy to know they have easier access to daily water needs. The project was completed on January 2023, and Solar Chapter will continue to maintain the system. Through this contribution, we hope to motivate both teachers and students of SMKN Sasitamean in their education endeavour.
Reference:
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/education/
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/water-and-sanitation/
