Keeping the water free of trash

Fighting back waste: Members of Situ Gede Cleanliness Warrior picking up trash on kayaks at Setu Gede lake in Bogor, West Java. — AP

AT a lake in the West Javan city of Bogor, children and teenagers paddle toward piles of floating trash, pick it up and store it in their kayaks, before passing it to friends sorting it onshore.

The group of around 20 youngsters started off as a team of one, a decade ago, when Giri Marhara decided to start cleaning up the lake.