Dania Sitadewi successfully defended her Doctor of Science Management (DSM) SBM ITB dissertation on July 21, 2023, at ITB Annex Building. Several professors attended the session.
Dania raised the issue of waste management in Bandung. The concept of his dissertation is to change the trash journey chain, initially linear to be circular.
At present, the practice involves the direct disposal of existing waste into landfills (TPA) without undergoing any form of processing or filtration. This linear waste management approach is commonly employed. Within the Bandung region, the primary emphasis remains centered on transporting waste to designated landfills.
Dania suggested a more optimal approach through the implementation of a circular waste management model, wherein waste would undergo the systematic 3R process: Reuse, Reduce, Recycle. The underlying theoretical framework draws from the circular economic system diagram proposed by EMF, complemented by the circular strategy conceptualized by Potting.
Dania also explained her steps in conducting research. Following the research phase, she formulated her dissertation model, which centers on diminishing the volume of waste directed to landfills and curbing the uncontained release of waste into the environment. Furthermore, the economical production of plastic waste reduction is a focal aspect of her model.
Dania affirmed that the circular strategy exhibits a favorable correlation with the concept of the circular economy. Government regulation is also positively associated with more adoption of circular strategies, which some positive changes with this circular strategy will prove.
She created three scenarios and conducted a comparative analysis of their outcomes, succinctly represented in a diagram. The outcomes incontrovertibly validate Dania’s originally posited hypothesis.
At the end of the presentation, she gave suggestions or solutions in the form of policy implications, namely a crucial circular strategy for processing plastic waste in Bandung. Bandung needs to stop relying solely on recycling, improve waste management and awareness to sort waste and increase support to the informal waste sector in its transition to a circular economy.
