The spark

At the “International Conference on Microplastic Pollution in the Mediterranean Sea”, held in Capri (Italy, September 2017), Miriam Weber and Christian Lott from HYDRA, who regularly visit Indonesia to conduct research on biodegradable plastics, and Prof. Markus Lasut from Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT)), their partner institution, presented a scientific poster entitled “From Coral Triangle to Trash Triangle - How the hotspot of marine biodiversity is threatened by plastic waste”.

Following this conference, it was decided that action was needed to try and combat this problem. And so the No-Trash Triangle Initiative was formed. From this moment on, a series of meetings, efforts and initiatives were taken to find a solution for the plastic crisis.

At the “National Meeting on Marine Litter”, held in November 2017 at UNSRAT, the concept of the No-Trash Triangle Initiative was presented to the public for the first time.

At the seminar “Waste management in the tourism industry” (March 2018) Christian presented the No-Trash Triangle Initiative and invited participants from local NGOs, hotels and dive resorts from Manado, Bunaken and Bangka to join the activities. 

Our co-founder Prof. Markus T. Lasut presented the No-Trash Triangle Initiative at the “Oceans SOS Tech Summit” in Manado (April 2018).

We were also honored with a special visit by influential figures in the fight against plastic who were in Manado for the “Celebrate the Sea Festival”. Marine scientist and educator Sarah-Jo Lobwein from Sydney and film maker Craig Leeson who made the film Plastic Oceans were especially inspirational and encouraging, and congratulated us on our work.