‘We believe nature has a soul’: CNN Hero’s offer of rice inspired people in Bali to collect tons of plastic for recycling

More than half of Bali’s economic revenue stems from tourism, employing hundreds of thousands of Balinese people in the industry.Many moved back to their home villages. And with more people returning to the villages, more trash piled up. With so many people out of work, they were also going hungry.”I said to myself, I got to do something about this,” said Made Janur Yasa, a vegan restaurant owner in the town of Ubud.Yasa said he wanted to find a way to help people in his community during the pandemic while also addressing the ongoing problem of plastic pollution.”I got to thinking, inside the challenge there is an opportunity,” he said. So, he started a program where local villagers could exchange plastic for rice — a barter system that would benefit the environment and empower the local people. Residents can turn in plastic trash they collected in exchange for a main food staple. In May 2020, he hosted the first exchange in the village where he was born and raised. It was a success, and the concept quickly spread to other villages across Bali. His non-profit, and see how to help.To donate to Plastic Exchange via GoFundMe, click here.Correction: An earlier version of this headline and story incorrectly stated the weight of plastic collected for recycling. It was 300 tons.