Exploring the Reality of Jakarta's Waste Problem

While a wide range of research methods exist, interviews are often favored for their speed and ease of execution, especially when resources are limited. However, is the information gathered through interviews truly sufficient?

In the previous article, we explored the fundamentals of research and highlighted the significance of field research. This article delves deeper into field research—despite being time-consuming and labor-intensive, it plays a crucial role in uncovering valuable insights. We will illustrate its importance with real-world examples from Moon Creative Lab’s venture, MariMari.
 

Table of Contents

1. Marimari Project Overview
2. Why Field Research?
3. Research Planning
4. Research Practices and Findings

1.Marimari Project Overview

Marimari is a project by Mitsui Indonesia that aims to solve Jakarta's waste management problem.

In Indonesia, rapid population growth and urbanization have led to a surge in waste generation. However, essential waste management infrastructure—such as proper separation and collection systems, incineration facilities, and landfill sites—remains insufficient, raising concerns about environmental pollution and public health risks.

Moreover, public garbage collection services are unavailable, leaving most residents to contract with private waste collection companies and pay a monthly fee. Many residents express frustration over inconsistent collection schedules and unreliable service.

In response to this situation, Mitsui Indonesia is addressing waste separation, collection, and environmental pollution as part of its broader mission to create a cleaner Indonesia and promote ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) initiatives.

The project's name, “Marimari,” comes from Malay, meaning “Let’s do it!” The initiative was conceptualized by Aris Munandar from Mitsui Indonesia through Moon’s ideation program. He later advanced to Moon’s incubation program where the team began conducting research for business development.

Born and raised in Indonesia, his vision is to “Make cleaner Indonesia a personal mission for everyone.” To bring this vision to life, he is collaborating with Moon to explore innovative waste management solutions.

2.Why Field Research?

At Moon, we prioritize defining problems and users to maximize the likelihood of product success. Clearly identifying "for whom" and "for what purpose" a product is being developed enables evidence-based decision-making and ensures services align with user needs.

Marimari was no exception. Field research was conducted to gain an in-depth understanding of the problem, user, and stakeholders involved. The research had two primary objectives:

1. Understanding Jakarta residents' waste-related behaviors, values, and pain points.
2. Understanding the waste collectors' business, processes, and challenges.

The necessity of objective 1: Understanding different cultures
Indonesia differs significantly from Japan in climate, society, economy, and religion, with over 80% of its population being Muslim. Conducting on-site research allowed the team to directly experience local customs and gain a deeper cultural understanding.

The necessity of objective 2: Understanding an unfamiliar industry
The waste management industry was largely unfamiliar to the team. Field research was crucial not only for understanding Indonesia’s broader waste challenges, but also for analyzing the structure, operations, and specific difficulties faced by individual waste collection businesses.

3. Research Planning

Once the research objectives were defined, we developed a research plan to determine how best to achieve them.

1) Research Jakarta Residents' Waste-related Behavior

• Waste Stations in the City
  • Investigate how waste is handled in residents' daily lives.
• Residential Home Visits
  • Observe actual waste collection and sorting practices at home and conduct interviews with residents to understand their values and concerns.
• Resident-participatory Behavioral Experiment
  • Identify the factors that hinder waste separation through observed actions rather than verbal responses.

(2) Industry Research on Waste Collectors

• Visits Waste Collection Sites and Landfills
  • Observe the entire process from waste collection to recycling. Engage with business owners and on-site workers to gain insights into their challenges and perspectives.

Once the overall research plan was established, we detailed implementation procedures:

1. Select target participants
2. Specify research methodology
3. Recruitment
4. Schedule coordination
5. Create discussion guides
6. Arrange recording equipment, consent forms, and other materials
7. Hire interpreters, if needed

With preparations complete, the research moved into execution.

4. Research Practices and Findings

The following are key observations and insights from the two-week field survey.

Waste Stations in the City

Upon arriving in Jakarta, we immediately noticed trash cans in shopping malls and office buildings designed for waste separation. However, as we observed users, many appeared confused about where to dispose of their trash.

Was this due to unclear signage? Or were people simply unaccustomed to sorting? At this stage, the exact cause remained unclear, but we identified several potential factors:

• Residents are making an effort to dispose of trash correctly.
• All trash bins are the same size and color, making distinctions difficult at a glance.
• Illustrations indicating waste categories are attached to the bins but positioned too low to be visible when standing in front of them.

While these challenges highlighted areas for improvement, a key finding was that residents showed a willingness to separate their waste correctly. This suggested that with better design and clearer guidance, waste separation could be more effectively implemented.

The next step was to visit people living in Jakarta.

Residential Home Visits

The team visited condominiums and single-family homes to examine waste management systems and household conditions. This investigation revealed factors unique to Indonesia’s economic and climatic environment, including:

• The common employment of maids, even in middle-class households, plays a key role in waste disposal.
• Concerns about winged ants and flies attracted to indoor waste.
• The presence of stray cats that tear garbage bags when left outside.

The research also uncovered the root causes of residents' distrust of waste collectors. Key issues included:

• Irregular and delayed collections leave residents uncertain about waste disposal schedules.
• No uniforms make it difficult to recognize whether the person is a waste collector or a stranger.
• Overflowing collection trucks result in scattered waste and environmental concerns.

Additionally, residents expressed skepticism toward waste collectors because they were not required to separate waste. Many assumed that all collected waste was simply dumped in landfills, reinforcing negative perceptions.

However, as the investigation progressed, the team discovered that some waste collectors were actively sorting waste by themselves. This finding highlighted that distrust stemmed not from actual practices but from longstanding operational transparency issues, fueling misconceptions about the industry.

Based on these findings, the team proceeded with a behavioral experiment to assess residents' willingness and accuracy in waste sorting.

Resident-participatory Behavioral Experiment: Exploring the potential of a sorting system

When asked, "Why don’t you sort your waste?" many residents responded, "We’re too spoiled!" However, it remained unclear whether this was due to a genuine lack of motivation or simply a lack of knowledge and proper infrastructure.

To address these questions and determine whether sorting could be successful with the right system in place, the team conducted a behavioral experiment involving 230 households to measure both their willingness and accuracy in waste sorting.

Experiment details

1. Distribution of garbage bags
   Two types of garbage bags—one for food scraps and one for other waste—were distributed to each household.
2. Measurement of Garbage Bag Usage
   Two weeks after distribution, the collected garbage bags were counted based on color.
3. Assessment of Sorting Accuracy
   Feedback was gathered from waste collectors to evaluate the accuracy of waste separation and the overall participation rate.

Results

• Participation rate: 54%
• Accurate sorting rate: 84%

Despite the simplicity of the experiment—merely distributing garbage bags—the findings revealed that residents were more willing to separate waste than expected. The results confirmed that proper waste sorting was entirely feasible, provided that an appropriate system was in place.

Furthermore, the steady increase in the participation rate throughout the two-week period highlighted the importance of providing clear information on waste separation and the need for continuous efforts to raise awareness.

Visits Waste Collection Sites and Landfills: Confirmed the lack of awareness of recycling activities

Preliminary surveys revealed that only 7.5% of waste collection businesses handle the entire process from collection to sorting and recycling. To gain deeper insights into their operations, the team conducted site visits to observe their actual working conditions.

During the visit, the team observed a facility using recycling equipment to separate plastics into 14 different types and compress them into small, fine pellet-like solids. However, it became evident that these recycling efforts remain largely unknown to residents.

The distinction between businesses engaged in recycling and those that simply dispose of waste in landfills is not widely recognized. As a result, the efforts of recycling businesses are not being effectively communicated to the public, limiting awareness and potential support for sustainable waste management practices.

This summarizes the field research conducted for the Marimari project. Through this research, we gained an in-depth understanding of Indonesia’s waste collection industry, shaped by a unique cultural background.

We hope that the full process introduced here—from defining research objectives and designing the method to execution and key discoveries—serves as a valuable reference.

Stay tuned for the next chapter where we’ll discuss how research findings impact the decision-making process in new business creation.

Yui Aiyama, Craft Lead