UNAIR NEWS – The Community Service Program (KKN) group at Suci Village recycled baby diapers into flower pots at the MTs Al-Firdaus. The group, which consisted of ten Universitas Airlangga students, invited Islamic junior high school students to join the program for educational purposes.

“We want to reduce the impact of environmental pollution. Besides, the program also has an educational purpose for the community because many people don’t realize that baby diapers can be transformed into goods with selling values,” said Maissy Ar Maghfiroh, one of the KKN students.

The program was conducted in collaboration with Larahan Makmur Waste Bank Community to recycle 40 baby diapers into flower pots.

“We cleaned the diapers thoroughly until the bad smells are gone. Then, we make the concrete mixture and gradually pour the water into a tub. The concrete mixture is spread well to the surface and inside of the baby diapers. Then, it was formed using a plastic-coated jar. The plastic will be taken off later. The pots will be dried in a place that is not directly exposed to sunlight to avoid cracking. Lastly, they can be painted or decorated creatively,” she said.

The pots were not for sale. Instead, they use the pots to plant flowers for the school. The program can be used for personal use or a business idea.

“The teachers welcomed the idea. They were happy that we conducted the program at the school where students enthusiastically took part in it from the start till the end,” said the Faculty of Advanced Technology and Multidiscipline (FTMM) student.

Apart from pot making, the group also conducted other programs, like Emergency Management of Disaster Mitigation at the Suci Village, Panti Sub-district, Jember; Dissemination of Processing and Storing Beef Infected with FMD; Assistance of Kadarzi (family aware of nutrition) to prevent stunting, and other programs.

Author: Leivina Ariani Sugiharto Putri

Editor  : Binti Q. Masruroh