WEBVTT 00:00:00.580 --> 00:00:04.054 Melati Wijsen: Bali -- island of gods. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:05.301 --> 00:00:07.642 Isabel Wijsen: A green paradise. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:09.139 --> 00:00:10.552 MW: Or ... 00:00:10.576 --> 00:00:12.393 a paradise lost. 00:00:13.075 --> 00:00:14.234 Bali: 00:00:14.696 --> 00:00:16.639 island of garbage. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:17.707 --> 00:00:18.859 IW: In Bali, 00:00:18.883 --> 00:00:24.834 we generate 680 cubic meters of plastic garbage a day. 00:00:25.801 --> 00:00:28.657 That's about a 14-story building. 00:00:29.205 --> 00:00:31.426 And when it comes to plastic bags, 00:00:31.450 --> 00:00:34.018 less than five percent gets recycled. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:34.900 --> 00:00:38.206 MW: We know that changes the image you may have of our island. 00:00:38.666 --> 00:00:41.150 It changed ours, too, when we learned about it, 00:00:41.174 --> 00:00:45.735 when we learned that almost all plastic bags in Bali end up in our drains 00:00:45.759 --> 00:00:47.009 and then in our rivers 00:00:47.033 --> 00:00:48.404 and then in our ocean. 00:00:48.900 --> 00:00:51.364 And those that don't even make it to the ocean, 00:00:51.388 --> 00:00:53.501 they're either burned or littered. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:54.183 --> 00:00:56.441 IW: So we decided to do something about it. 00:00:56.812 --> 00:00:59.311 And we've been working for almost three years now 00:00:59.335 --> 00:01:02.687 to try to say no to plastic bags on our home island. 00:01:02.711 --> 00:01:05.175 And we have had some significant successes. NOTE Paragraph 00:01:06.835 --> 00:01:08.867 MW: We are sisters, 00:01:08.891 --> 00:01:11.458 and we go to the best school on earth: 00:01:12.061 --> 00:01:13.586 Green School, Bali. 00:01:13.610 --> 00:01:18.233 Green School is not only different in the way that it is built out of bamboo, 00:01:18.257 --> 00:01:20.220 but also in the way that it teaches. 00:01:20.864 --> 00:01:23.551 We are taught to become leaders of today, 00:01:24.518 --> 00:01:26.951 something a normal textbook cannot match. NOTE Paragraph 00:01:27.813 --> 00:01:29.834 IW: One day we had a lesson in class 00:01:29.858 --> 00:01:32.571 where we learned about significant people, 00:01:32.595 --> 00:01:34.083 like Nelson Mandela, 00:01:34.107 --> 00:01:35.258 Lady Diana 00:01:35.282 --> 00:01:36.507 and Mahatma Gandhi. 00:01:37.244 --> 00:01:38.401 Walking home that day, 00:01:38.425 --> 00:01:41.733 we agreed that we also wanted to be significant. 00:01:42.614 --> 00:01:44.651 Why should we wait until we were grown up 00:01:44.675 --> 00:01:45.933 to be significant? 00:01:46.420 --> 00:01:48.494 We wanted to do something now. NOTE Paragraph 00:01:49.135 --> 00:01:50.835 MW: Sitting on the sofa that night, 00:01:50.859 --> 00:01:53.695 we brainstormed and thought of all the issues facing Bali. 00:01:54.332 --> 00:01:56.396 And one thing that stood out to us the most 00:01:56.420 --> 00:01:57.784 was the plastic garbage. 00:01:58.536 --> 00:02:00.603 But that is a huge problem. 00:02:01.189 --> 00:02:04.671 So we looked into what was a realistic target for us kids: 00:02:05.589 --> 00:02:06.820 plastic bags. 00:02:06.844 --> 00:02:08.237 And the idea was born. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:08.983 --> 00:02:10.964 IW: We started researching, 00:02:10.988 --> 00:02:13.928 and let's just say, the more we learned, 00:02:13.952 --> 00:02:17.041 there was nothing good about plastic bags. 00:02:17.401 --> 00:02:18.671 And you know what? 00:02:18.695 --> 00:02:20.273 We don't even need them. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:21.003 --> 00:02:24.544 MW: We were really inspired by the efforts to say no to plastic bags 00:02:24.568 --> 00:02:26.438 in many other places, 00:02:26.462 --> 00:02:28.444 from Hawaii to Rwanda 00:02:28.468 --> 00:02:31.013 and to severals cities like Oakland and Dublin. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:31.784 --> 00:02:37.449 IW: And so the idea turned into the launch of "Bye Bye Plastic Bags." 00:02:38.658 --> 00:02:40.850 MW: In the years that we have been campaigning, 00:02:40.874 --> 00:02:43.436 we have learned a lot. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:43.984 --> 00:02:45.626 Lesson number one: 00:02:46.233 --> 00:02:48.391 you cannot do it all by yourself. 00:02:48.415 --> 00:02:50.607 You need a big team of like-minded kids, 00:02:50.631 --> 00:02:53.802 and so we formed the Bye Bye Plastic Bags crew. 00:02:54.459 --> 00:02:57.574 The volunteer team includes children from all over the island, 00:02:57.598 --> 00:02:59.997 from both international and local schools. 00:03:00.505 --> 00:03:01.656 And together with them, 00:03:01.680 --> 00:03:03.430 we started a multi-layered approach, 00:03:03.454 --> 00:03:06.750 based on an on- and off-line signature petition, 00:03:06.774 --> 00:03:10.210 educational and inspirational presentations at schools 00:03:10.234 --> 00:03:14.719 and we raise general awareness at markets, festivals, beach clean-ups. 00:03:14.743 --> 00:03:15.894 And last but not least, 00:03:15.918 --> 00:03:17.964 we distribute alternative bags, 00:03:17.988 --> 00:03:19.712 bags like net bags, 00:03:19.736 --> 00:03:21.058 recycled newspaper bags 00:03:21.082 --> 00:03:23.802 or 100 percent organic material bags, 00:03:23.826 --> 00:03:26.339 all made by local initiatives on the island. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:26.898 --> 00:03:28.292 IW: We run a pilot village, 00:03:28.316 --> 00:03:30.428 home of 800 families. 00:03:30.952 --> 00:03:32.775 The village mayor was our first friend 00:03:32.799 --> 00:03:35.265 and he loved our T-shirts, so that helped. 00:03:36.077 --> 00:03:38.745 We focused on making the customers aware, 00:03:38.769 --> 00:03:41.487 because that's where the change needs to happen. 00:03:42.266 --> 00:03:44.463 The village is already two-thirds along the way 00:03:44.487 --> 00:03:46.492 of becoming plastic bag free. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:47.330 --> 00:03:52.205 Our first attempts to get the government of Bali on board failed. 00:03:52.696 --> 00:03:53.846 So we thought, 00:03:54.391 --> 00:03:58.691 "Hmm ... a petition with one million signatures. 00:03:58.715 --> 00:04:00.708 They can't ignore us, right?" NOTE Paragraph 00:04:00.732 --> 00:04:01.895 MW: Right! NOTE Paragraph 00:04:02.258 --> 00:04:04.093 IW: But, who would have guessed 00:04:04.117 --> 00:04:08.279 one million signatures is, like, a thousand times a thousand? NOTE Paragraph 00:04:08.303 --> 00:04:09.930 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:04:10.270 --> 00:04:11.835 We got stuck -- 00:04:12.747 --> 00:04:14.738 till we learned lesson number two: 00:04:15.507 --> 00:04:17.462 think outside the box. 00:04:17.808 --> 00:04:18.959 Someone mentioned 00:04:18.983 --> 00:04:25.384 that the Bali airport handles 16 million arrivals and departures a year. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:26.294 --> 00:04:29.610 MW: But how do we get into the airport? 00:04:29.993 --> 00:04:31.686 And here comes lesson number three: 00:04:32.236 --> 00:04:33.676 persistence. 00:04:34.141 --> 00:04:35.768 Off we headed to the airport. 00:04:35.792 --> 00:04:37.444 We got past the janitor. 00:04:37.819 --> 00:04:39.705 And then it was his boss's boss, 00:04:39.729 --> 00:04:41.990 and then the assistant office manager, 00:04:42.014 --> 00:04:43.399 and then the office manager, 00:04:43.423 --> 00:04:44.594 and then ... 00:04:44.618 --> 00:04:46.765 we got shuffled down two levels and thought, 00:04:46.789 --> 00:04:48.954 well, here comes the janitor again. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:49.537 --> 00:04:51.585 And after several days knocking on doors 00:04:51.609 --> 00:04:53.925 and just being kids on a mission, 00:04:53.949 --> 00:04:57.837 we finally got to the commercial manager of Bali airports. 00:04:58.368 --> 00:05:02.281 And we gave him the "Bali of plastic bags" speech, and being a very nice man, 00:05:02.305 --> 00:05:06.003 he said, [imitating the man's voice] "I cannot believe what I'm about say, 00:05:06.027 --> 00:05:08.270 but I'm going to give authorization 00:05:08.294 --> 00:05:11.251 to collect signatures behind customs and immigrations." NOTE Paragraph 00:05:11.275 --> 00:05:12.619 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:05:12.643 --> 00:05:16.938 (Applause) NOTE Paragraph 00:05:16.962 --> 00:05:18.906 IW: In our first hour and a half there, 00:05:18.930 --> 00:05:21.605 we got almost 1,000 signatures. 00:05:21.954 --> 00:05:23.255 How cool is that? NOTE Paragraph 00:05:24.340 --> 00:05:25.851 Lesson number four: 00:05:25.875 --> 00:05:28.876 you need champions at all levels of society, 00:05:29.486 --> 00:05:33.295 from students to commercial managers to famous people. 00:05:34.097 --> 00:05:36.209 And thanks to the attraction of Green School, 00:05:36.233 --> 00:05:38.899 we had access to a steady stream of celebrities. 00:05:39.937 --> 00:05:41.136 Ban Ki Moon taught us 00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:44.521 that Secretary-Generals of the United Nations 00:05:44.545 --> 00:05:46.196 don't sign petitions -- NOTE Paragraph 00:05:46.220 --> 00:05:47.221 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:05:47.245 --> 00:05:49.082 even if kids ask nicely. 00:05:49.106 --> 00:05:50.791 But he promised to spread the word, 00:05:50.815 --> 00:05:53.328 and now we work closely with the United Nations. NOTE Paragraph 00:05:53.701 --> 00:05:56.644 MW: Jane Goodall taught us the power of a people's network. 00:05:57.055 --> 00:06:00.095 She started with just one Roots & Shoots group 00:06:00.119 --> 00:06:03.410 and now she has 4,000 groups around the world. 00:06:03.434 --> 00:06:04.607 We are one of them. 00:06:04.631 --> 00:06:06.073 She's a real inspiration. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:06.731 --> 00:06:08.483 If you're a fellow Rotarian, 00:06:08.507 --> 00:06:09.797 nice to meet you. 00:06:09.821 --> 00:06:10.972 We're Interactors, 00:06:10.996 --> 00:06:13.327 the youngest department of Rotary International. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:14.573 --> 00:06:17.816 IW: But we have also learned much about patience, NOTE Paragraph 00:06:17.840 --> 00:06:20.097 MW: how to deal with frustrations, NOTE Paragraph 00:06:20.121 --> 00:06:21.272 IW: leadership, NOTE Paragraph 00:06:21.296 --> 00:06:22.465 MW: teamwork, NOTE Paragraph 00:06:22.489 --> 00:06:23.640 IW: friendship, NOTE Paragraph 00:06:23.664 --> 00:06:26.323 MW: we learned more about the Balinese and their culture NOTE Paragraph 00:06:26.347 --> 00:06:29.505 IW: and we learned about the importance of commitment. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:30.106 --> 00:06:31.840 MW: It's not always easy. 00:06:31.864 --> 00:06:35.329 Sometimes it does get a little bit hard to walk your talk. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:35.830 --> 00:06:38.257 IW: But last year, we did exactly that. 00:06:38.663 --> 00:06:40.266 We went to India to give a talk, 00:06:40.290 --> 00:06:41.845 and our parents took us to visit 00:06:41.869 --> 00:06:44.457 the former private house of Mahatma Gandhi. 00:06:45.216 --> 00:06:47.470 We learned about the power of hunger strikes 00:06:47.494 --> 00:06:48.770 he did to reach his goals. 00:06:49.329 --> 00:06:51.327 Yes, by the end of the tour, 00:06:51.351 --> 00:06:53.002 when we met our parents again, 00:06:53.026 --> 00:06:54.692 we both made a decision and said, 00:06:54.716 --> 00:06:56.472 "We're going on a hunger strike!" NOTE Paragraph 00:06:56.496 --> 00:06:57.497 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:06:57.521 --> 00:07:00.420 MW: And you can probably imagine their faces. 00:07:00.444 --> 00:07:02.722 It took a lot of convincing, 00:07:02.746 --> 00:07:04.478 and not only to our parents 00:07:04.502 --> 00:07:06.794 but to our friends and to our teachers as well. 00:07:07.561 --> 00:07:10.532 Isabel and I were serious about doing this. 00:07:10.556 --> 00:07:12.165 So we met with a nutritionist, 00:07:12.189 --> 00:07:14.029 and we came up with a compromise 00:07:14.053 --> 00:07:18.318 of not eating from sunrise to sunset every day 00:07:18.342 --> 00:07:20.947 until the governor of Bali would agree to meet with us 00:07:20.971 --> 00:07:24.458 to talk about how to stop plastic bags on Bali. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:25.118 --> 00:07:29.138 IW: Our "mogak makan," as it is called in Bahasa Indonesia, 00:07:29.162 --> 00:07:30.313 started. 00:07:30.337 --> 00:07:32.326 We used social media to support our goal 00:07:32.350 --> 00:07:34.117 and already on day two, 00:07:34.141 --> 00:07:36.407 police started to come to our home and school. 00:07:36.724 --> 00:07:38.921 What were these two girls doing? 00:07:39.466 --> 00:07:41.976 We knew we weren't making the governor look his best 00:07:42.000 --> 00:07:43.881 by doing this food strike -- 00:07:43.905 --> 00:07:45.339 we could have gone to jail. 00:07:45.768 --> 00:07:47.697 But, hey, it worked. 00:07:47.721 --> 00:07:48.947 Twenty-four hours later, 00:07:48.971 --> 00:07:50.383 we were picked up from school 00:07:50.407 --> 00:07:52.430 and escorted to the office of the governor. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:53.283 --> 00:07:54.796 MW: And there he was -- NOTE Paragraph 00:07:54.820 --> 00:07:57.029 (Applause) NOTE Paragraph 00:07:57.053 --> 00:07:58.983 waiting for us to meet and speak, 00:07:59.007 --> 00:08:01.557 being all supportive and thankful for our willingness 00:08:01.581 --> 00:08:04.193 to care for the beauty and the environment of Bali. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:04.812 --> 00:08:05.963 He signed a promise 00:08:05.987 --> 00:08:08.738 to help the people of Bali say no to plastic bags. 00:08:08.762 --> 00:08:09.916 And we are now friends, 00:08:09.940 --> 00:08:11.336 and on a regular basis, 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:14.657 we remind him and his team of the promises he has made. 00:08:15.372 --> 00:08:16.523 And indeed, 00:08:16.547 --> 00:08:18.453 recently he stated and committed 00:08:18.477 --> 00:08:23.120 that Bali will be plastic bag free by 2018. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:23.144 --> 00:08:29.980 (Applause) NOTE Paragraph 00:08:31.498 --> 00:08:36.115 IW: Also, at the International Airport of Bali, one of our supporters 00:08:36.139 --> 00:08:40.701 is planning to start a plastic bag-free policy by 2016. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:41.186 --> 00:08:43.173 MW: Stop handing out free plastic bags 00:08:43.197 --> 00:08:44.893 and bring in your own reusable bag 00:08:44.917 --> 00:08:48.361 is our next message to change that mindset of the public. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:49.405 --> 00:08:51.102 IW: Our short-term campaign, 00:08:51.126 --> 00:08:52.558 "One Island / One Voice," 00:08:52.582 --> 00:08:54.016 is all about this. 00:08:54.040 --> 00:08:56.719 We check and recognize the shops and restaurants 00:08:56.743 --> 00:08:59.586 that have declared themselves a plastic bag-free zone, 00:08:59.610 --> 00:09:01.983 and we put this sticker at their entrance 00:09:02.007 --> 00:09:04.325 and publish their names on social media 00:09:04.349 --> 00:09:06.425 and some important magazines on Bali. 00:09:06.829 --> 00:09:07.980 And conversely, 00:09:08.004 --> 00:09:10.829 that highlights those who do not have the sticker. NOTE Paragraph 00:09:10.853 --> 00:09:12.240 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:09:12.731 --> 00:09:16.050 MW: So, why are we actually telling you all of this? 00:09:16.673 --> 00:09:18.591 Well, partly, it is because we are proud 00:09:18.615 --> 00:09:20.686 of the results that, together with our team, 00:09:20.710 --> 00:09:22.066 we have been able to reach. 00:09:22.469 --> 00:09:24.557 But also because along the way, 00:09:24.581 --> 00:09:27.421 we have learned that kids can do things. 00:09:27.445 --> 00:09:29.099 We can make things happen. 00:09:29.891 --> 00:09:32.318 Isabel and I were only 10 and 12 years old 00:09:32.342 --> 00:09:33.901 when we started this. 00:09:33.925 --> 00:09:35.978 We never had a business plan, 00:09:36.002 --> 00:09:37.226 nor a fixed strategy, 00:09:37.250 --> 00:09:39.169 nor any hidden agendas -- 00:09:39.193 --> 00:09:41.633 just the idea in front of us 00:09:41.657 --> 00:09:43.770 and a group of friends working with us. 00:09:44.195 --> 00:09:46.441 All we wanted to do was stop those plastic bags 00:09:46.465 --> 00:09:49.107 from wrapping and suffocating our beautiful home. 00:09:49.933 --> 00:09:51.641 Kids have a boundless energy 00:09:51.665 --> 00:09:55.830 and a motivation to be the change the world needs. NOTE Paragraph 00:09:56.454 --> 00:10:01.179 IW: So to all the kids of this beautiful but challenging world: 00:10:01.690 --> 00:10:02.844 go for it! 00:10:02.868 --> 00:10:04.623 Make that difference. 00:10:05.057 --> 00:10:07.476 We're not telling you it's going to be easy. 00:10:07.500 --> 00:10:09.767 We're telling you it's going to be worth it. 00:10:10.221 --> 00:10:14.592 Us kids may only be 25 percent of the world's population, 00:10:14.616 --> 00:10:17.923 but we are 100 percent of the future. NOTE Paragraph 00:10:19.050 --> 00:10:21.706 MW: We still have a lot of work to do, 00:10:21.730 --> 00:10:23.395 but know that we still not stop 00:10:23.419 --> 00:10:27.844 until the first question asked when arriving at the Bali airports will be NOTE Paragraph 00:10:28.682 --> 00:10:30.016 Both: "Welcome to Bali, 00:10:30.040 --> 00:10:32.207 do you have nay plastic bags to declare?" NOTE Paragraph 00:10:32.231 --> 00:10:33.644 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:10:33.668 --> 00:10:36.404 Om shanti shanti shanti om. NOTE Paragraph 00:10:36.428 --> 00:10:37.579 Thank you. NOTE Paragraph 00:10:37.603 --> 00:10:47.396 (Applause)