Depok-More than 1,600 new students of the Universitas Indonesia (UI) Vocational Education Program took part in utilizing plastic waste and reusing it to support a sustainable campus through the 2025 Introduction to Campus Life for Students (PKKMB) activity. The activity, which was held on August 13, 2025, had a series entitled “Sustainable Lifestyle: Utilizing Plastic Bottle Waste for Plant Pots”. This activity invited students to make a real contribution to environmental sustainability by making vertical gardens from plastic waste.
In this series of activities, 69 groups of new students were challenged to transform used plastic bottles into creative plant pots according to their own designs. The result was hundreds of unique pots created and neatly installed along the fence along the UI Vocational VPark area, creating a green environment and providing visual education about the importance of plastic waste management.
(Photo: Representatives of new students when they were about to install plants in the vertical garden area of UI Vocational VPark)
The Director of UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, stated that this activity is a concrete implementation of sustainability values on campus. “Through this activity, students not only learn to collaborate and be creative, but also instill an awareness of their responsibility towards the environment. Initiatives such as vertical gardens utilizing plastic waste are in line with UI’s commitment to supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and achieving UI GreenMetric, particularly in the aspects of waste management and campus greening,” said Padang.
Some SDGs points related to the activity are point 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) by presenting vertical green spaces in the campus area that support the management of green open spaces in urban environments; point 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) through reducing plastic waste by recycling it into plant pots; and point 15 (Life on Land) through supporting the preservation of biodiversity in the campus environment.
(Photo: A number of students carry plants covered in packaging made from plastic waste, the result of their work)
Daffa Nur Gazani, a new student in the Records and Archives Management program, expressed his delight at being directly involved in this activity. He said, “At first, I thought it was just about making pots, but I learned so much, including how to recycle plastic bottles and grow ornamental plants. I’ve come to understand how small things like this can have a big impact on the environment.”
This vertical garden initiative symbolizes the collaboration and creativity of new students while also supporting UI’s mission to be an environmentally friendly and globally competitive campus. Through this initiative, it is hoped that the spirit of environmental sustainability will continue to grow among the academic community and become a sustainable positive habit.
