Jakarta, June 6 -- Indonesian Ministry of Environment is encouraging a national ecological repentance movement to reduce the volume of waste produced, which has now exceeded 51 million tons annually.

In a press statement received here on Saturday, Minister of Environment Jumhur Hidayat emphasised the importance of shifting the paradigm of waste management, from upstream to downstream, to reduce the production of millions of tons of waste.

"Ecological repentance is a calling to reflect and shift the way we interact with nature," Hidayat remarked.

According to him, Indonesia is currently facing a waste emergency with 74 percent of the total annual waste volume remaining unmanaged, with the majority ending up in landfills using open dumpi...