The Citarum Program is using Monash’s deep expertise and capabilities in water-sensitive solutions to address pollution in the Citarum River in West Java, Indonesia. Monash University and Universitas Indonesia are partnering with the Indonesian Government, communities, local NGOs, and the global research community to develop innovations that deliver improved water and waste services, and revitalise the community, economy and environment. By co-designing new infrastructure, behaviour programs, business models and institutions, our aim is to help communities move away from dumping or discharging waste into the environment, and shift towards circular solutions that recycle, remanufacture and reuse waste.

In 2021 the Victorian Government awarded the Program a grant to establish a ‘living lab’ to address pollution in the river. The grant is enabling the Program to establish an international consortium to use the living lab as a platform to translate research into real-world impact. The living lab in the Citarum basin is a place-based initiative, where we will collaborate with our partners and local villages to co-design an integrated urban model that addresses river contamination caused by lack of waste and sanitation infrastructure. The aim is to co-create waste and water solutions that incentivise new behaviours and practices, that act to restore and protect the river, and improve the lives and livelihoods of vulnerable riverine communities.