ULM Promotes Environmental Education in Karang Intan Village Through the First Environmental Class at the BUNGAS Women’s School
KARANG INTAN – Lambung Mangkurat University (ULM), through the Student Organization Capacity Building Program (PPK Ormawa) of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Student Representative Council (DPM FKIK), held the first Environmental Class with the theme “Zero Waste, Big Impact: Small Steps for a Better Earth” at the Karang Intan Village Hall on Thursday (August 7, 2025).
This activity targeted local residents, including women from the Family Welfare Movement (PKK), men, village youth, and community leaders. The goal was to increase residents’ awareness and skills in managing waste sustainably, as a concrete step toward protecting the earth.
The Head of the ULM DPM FKIK Ormawa, Muhammad Gilang Syahrial Putra, explained that this program represents a concrete implementation of ULM’s contribution to environmental issues, particularly at the village level.
“We want to provide practical education so that people can initiate change from their own homes,” he said.
In the first session, Ayuning Listari, a Psychology student at ULM, discussed environmental awareness from a psychological perspective. She explained the phenomenon of eco-anxiety and the reasons why people are often inconsistent in environmentally friendly behavior. Ayuning also shared practical strategies such as habit stacking, positive visualization, and self-affirmation to build consistent environmentally friendly habits.
The second session was delivered by Alif Reza Adzany Hafit, an Environmental Engineering student at ULM, who educated residents about types of waste, sorting techniques, and the negative impacts of waste accumulation on the environment and health.
“Waste is not a problem if it is managed properly. Sorting is a simple but impactful contribution to the environment,” he emphasized.
Following the presentation, participants watched an educational video on waste management and actively engaged in a question-and-answer session. As a follow-up, the implementation team distributed two trash bags to each household to separate organic and inorganic waste.
As part of the class’ output, this waste will be collected a week later and processed into fertilizer, which will serve as the initial step in establishing the Karang Intan Village Waste Bank.
The event concluded with a joint documentation session, expressing the hope that small steps initiated in the village can have a broad positive impact. ULM’s presence in the community demonstrates the university’s commitment to promoting environmental education and supporting sustainable development in the region.
