MEDAN — A total of 160 students from Al Amjad Private Elementary School conducted a field trip to the Integrated Waste Management Site (TPST) of Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) on Thursday, October 9, 2025. The activity was directly led by Umi Septi and Umi Beby, serving as Vice Principals for Curriculum, and accompanied by 12 teachers.

The visit was carried out in two sessions. The first session took place from 08.00 to 09.30 WIB and was attended by 80 students, while the second session took place from 10.00 to 11.30 WIB with the same number of participants. The students were welcomed by Zaid Pradana Nasution, S.T., M.T., Ph.D., as the Head of TPST USU; Dr. Eng. Ir. Hafizhul Khair, A.M., S.T., M.T., as the Deputy Head; and four TPST USU facilitators, namely Alwi Siddiq (area coordinator), Panelis Zai, Muhammad Fauzan, and Dally Raj Singh.

According to Umi Septi, the environmental education visit conducted by Al Amjad Private Elementary students aimed to foster environmental awareness and enthusiasm for learning among the participants. The students appeared enthusiastic as they observed the entire waste management process and listened attentively to the explanations delivered by the Head of TPST USU and his team. Accompanied by their teachers, they paid close attention to the presentation by the TPST USU research team, which introduced various types of waste and emphasized the importance of waste segregation.

During their time at TPST USU, the students participated in an interactive tour around the different waste management areas, learning about the processing stages—from sorting and shredding to converting waste into useful products using the available equipment. They were also very eager to learn about the maggot life cycle and its function, as well as to observe products derived from maggot processing.

Zaid Pradana, as Head of TPST USU, expressed his hope that this visit would inspire the students to become small agents of change within their families and schools, bringing home a deeper understanding of the importance of environmental sustainability.

“We have high hopes that, in the future, TPST USU can serve as a learning platform for students. We plan to open more field trip opportunities to introduce waste management and its many derivative products that offer significant benefits,” concluded Zaid optimistically.