in the mid-1990s, Olivier Pouillon saw a young child dies in an illegal dump hotel. The experience left a deep scar. Olivier decided to do its part to try to prevent something similar never happens again. Growing up in the U.S.A. and Asia, he graduated from Hunter College in 1993, New York City, majoring in environmental studies and political science. The young man arrived in Bali in 1991 to study Indonesian culture, language and urban issues. In 1993, he returned to Bali, then married a local girl, began to raise a family and almost 
What do you like most about your job?
This may surprise people, but working in the garbage here is very interesting with a lot of dynamics and layers of intrigue. The situation is also changing very rapidly. It is difficult to do this kind of work and there are a lot of sacrifices, but we were able to make progress and begin to see positive changes. Although it is not obvious, I believe the future of waste management in Bali is very bright.
We are the only company fully licensed that manages all types of waste, providing recycling services, and disposal of hazardous wastes as well. It is all about zero waste, sustainable and viable solutions.
What is your philosophy of waste disposal?
waste is actually a human concept. In nature there is no such thing as waste, cycles where nutrients and elements are constantly recycled. We believe that we have to follow the same approach. Waste is really a misuse of resources and we need to recover these resources, "recycle" these resources. Using methods such as composting, creating biogas from putrid food waste and non-organic waste recycling.
Can you give some examples of recyclable materials?
We can recycle many types of plastic bags, plastic containers, all types of paper, paperboard, cardboard, metals, aluminum, used wax, oils, bottles glass, electronic waste, garden waste, food waste, biomass (wood shells / bamboo / coconut), and many more. Some things are easier to recycle, so we find ways to reuse or recycle as the candy bar and a smart tote bag with aluminum interior trim, plus packing Styrofoam containers and takeaway PVC food packaging. Then there are things that are really dangerous and can not be easily recycled as fluorescent lamps and dry batteries. These fall into the category of hazardous waste and must be disposed of safely.
Why is eliminating significant waste?
How did this happened situation?
In less than a generation, the waste profile has completely changed in Bali. It was thirty years ago, there were very few human waste. Plastic was unusual. Traditional methods of throwing garbage behind your house or in the river were entirely appropriate. As the population was less than half what it is today. Bali, like the rest of Indonesia and the developing world, was a huge population boom. Urban migration and economic development have introduced a consumer consumption economy. The problems of Bali are accentuated because all these things happened in a relatively small island.
Who are your customers?
What may be surprising to most Westerners is that most of our clients are Indonesians. There is a misconception held by many Westerners that people do not care about the environment and they do not get it. This is not really the case. As you will see that not every Westerner is "eco conscious." Our demographic numbers of customers are now actually housewives and local students. We work with many restaurants and some hotels, but in absolute terms, we have more than 1000 Indonesian residential customers.
What role education has in promoting the responsibility of waste disposal?
Often the mantra of social and environmental advocates on waste is "people need to be educated about the problem" or "the solution is education." Any obviously, education on waste issues is important, but it really is only one ingredient in a recipe for change. no real waste systems and practices in place, education will not be enough. This was the case in Indonesia, where schools and government campaigns have educated the masses on pollution garbage, but without adequate infrastructure waste, no significant progress has actually happened. Bali Recycling provides this infrastructure and adapts to different groups to support a change behavior in society.
Out of curiosity, what will happen after the huge Suwung discharge fills?
Suwung is already filled ! On the positive side, he forced the issue of waste must not be ignored. I think we can completely change around if we can create systems where everyone stops making waste and creates "a waste of resources" that are returned to nature or industry instead. Imagine each hotel to decide stop trucking waste and begins using organic waste to produce compost that gives life to use in tropical gardens; who decides to stop polluting the rivers and mangroves and initiates instead of recycling programs . all this is quite possible! We can all adopt these practices to some extent in our homes and businesses. None of this requires new technology, just a new perspective. Bali really no environmental problems , just solutions waiting to be adopted.