Implications of the global pandemic will continue to unfold in the months ahead, with tourism continuing to count the cost of Covid-19. But this period of lockdown can also offer an opportunity for redesign and growth. Some facilities in Indonesia are already retooling operations to be greener, more sustainable and better able to face the future. In this article, we take a look at how one hospitality group is taking their sustainability credentials to the next level.
Indonesia’s Potato Head group has banned single-use plastics, created their own water desalination plant and adhered to a zero-waste philosophy wherever possible. They opened Desa Potato Head in 2019; an eco-friendly village that embodies their dedication to protecting the planet and features the cutting-edge Sustainism Lab – a place to melt down and upcycle any non-biodegradable materials created at PHBC or elsewhere within Desa Potato Head. Potato Head describes the project as “a multi-disciplinary hub of the future, built around a super simple mission: provide good times and do good in the world.”
Potato Head is the first Indonesian hospitality company independently verified as carbon neutral by the United Nations’ Climate Neutral Now initiative. This means that for every tonne of climate-changing carbon Potato Head has put into the atmosphere, it has invested in a renewable energy or infrastructure that takes that same amount of carbon out. With single-use plastics eliminated, the company also encourages others to do the same by signing a commitment to ban drinking straws and shopping bags, implement robust recycling programs and organise beach clean-ups for the debris on the shores.
Potato Head actively raises funds for academic scholarships to the world-renowned Green School in Ubud, to ensure Balinese children can grow up as green leaders. The company also co-hosts a monthly workshop series for families dedicated to sustainability and the preservation of local customs and crafts.
Whether learning how to upcycle plastics into products or dancing until sunrise, Desa Potato Head guests will discover an experiential playground where they can become engaged and be inspired. It’s a place where ideas can be shared, as a way to ignite change, both in Indonesia and abroad. Although there is no shortcut to solving all the world’s environmental challenges, Potato Head believes that by changing old habits, creating new standards and being committed to finding solutions both large and small, we can minimise our impact on the earth.
