A Visit to R.O.L.E Foundation

Hey, Greensters!

The entrance

Patricia here :) A few months ago, Vanessa and I went to R.O.L.E. Foundation. R.O.L.E. stands for Rivers, Oceans, Lands and Education. R.O.L.E. Foundation is a non-profit humanitarian organisation whose aim is to improve the education, well-being and self reliance of people living underprivileged circumstances, whilst ensuring environmental resilience and sustainability. R.O.L.E Foundation was established in 2007 by Mr. Michael O'Leary. 

I went there because I was invited by Surfer Girl as their Green Ambassador. There were 30 people (including Vanessa and I) so we split into 3 groups of ten. Vanessa and I were in one group. Our tour guides were Maddy and Made (you should pronounce the name as "Ma" like in 'Mama' and 'De' like in 'Day'). Made is the environmental ambassador of R.O.L.E. foundation. Maddy is from Australia and Made is from Tabanan. Our group was left behind. The others were already far ahead of us and we were not even half way till the end. We had asked a lot of questions, maybe that's why we got left behind.

'Waste to Wonder' area

In the starting, we got a little passport that we had to bring around. First, we studied about Permaculture.

This is a great way to reuse the plastic bottle caps

Permaculture uses the intercropping technique. In Indonesia, it is called "tehnik tumpang sari". In a permaculture garden, there are more than one plants so its not just one species of plant and it has a sustainable lifecycle. Perma means many plants working with one another so we have to know which plants can be "friends" with which plant. For example: Peas and leaks forming Jatropha. Jatropha's "friend" is aloe vera. That's permaculture. 

We also learned about 'organic pesticides' related to the plants. For example:

• Marigold flower's leaves can get rid off grasshoppers out of the garden. In Bali, Marigold flower is called 'Gumitir'. 
• Lemongrass can make the rats and mosquitoes go away from the garden. 

The seed balls created by a Japanese man

After we studied about Permaculture, we went to 'Waste To Wonder' where we learnt about waste management system. There we learnt how to make liquid compost and solid compost.

For solid compost, we need to mix leaves with cows / horse / chicken manures. The microorganisms from the manures will make the composting system work by releasing the nitrogen and CO2 within 2 weeks. Every 4 days, we have to turn over the piles until the solid compost is ready for use within 2 months. 

It is more complicated when it comes to make the liquid compost. For 1 drum, we need 1/2 kilograms of granulated sugar and fresh cows' manure to be mixed with half drum full of leaves. Fill the drum with water until it's almost full. We need to stir it for 5 minutes every day and it will be ready in 2 months. Liquid compost is a strong compost. You need to dilute it in water (1 liter liquid compost should be mixed with 20 liters of water). Also, don't pour the liquid compost directly to the leaves, but just to the roots.

The Smell Test

After that, we went to study about Reforestation. In Indonesia, Reforestation is called 'Reboisasi'. This is my favorite part. They had a game there. So we throw seed balls into these rings. If you win, you get a shell necklace. The seed balls was a method from a Japanese man - Making the ball from compost + seeds + earth + sand + water. When you throw it, don't take it back because when it rains, the soil will disperse and the seeds will grow into a tree. Why do they have to throw the seed balls? Because the forests are usually located in very difficult areas such as mountains. By throwing the seed balls from the sky (for example), then you can gain larger areas for the reforestation. The seeds to make 'the seed balls' are seeds from Kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra), Noni tree (morinda plant), or Ketapang tree (Terminalia catappa). 

Then we did a smell test on some herbs. Here are some of the herbs:

• Ginseng: From Japan and Korea - for wounds.
• Bokashi: From Bali - used for oil.
• Ginten: From Mediterranean - for allergies.
• Lemon grass - anti mosquitoes, tea, aromatherapy.

Natural Dyes

There is also a place called 'Jamu Bar' where you can learn about traditional beverages made of herbs, such as Turmeric (benefits: anti-inflammatory, improves liver and heart functions), Lemongrass (benefits: soothes stomach, relieves headache pains), etc.

Then we went to Snail Farm and learnt about snails. They give the snail papaya leaves or any leaf that tastes bitter to clean their stomach in a week before they are used for cooking. 

We also learned about Natural Dyes from leaves and roots of trees that can be used to make natural fabrics. For examples: golden brown color can be made of Mahogany leaves, golden yellow color can be made of Ketapang leaves and so on. We also saw how some women did the weaving works from the organic threads to make a natural fabric using a traditional weaving tool.

Weaving area

It was an awesome experience. I learnt a lot.

Thank you to the R.O.L.E Foundation for sharing and thank you to Surfer Girl!

Thank you for reading.

Best regards,

Patricia