Building Health and Community through Coffee

Safe water has transformed Alysyahbana’s life, and now he’s devoted to sharing the experience with others — starting with his community of Terjun, Indonesia.

Alysyahbana and Jordan of Water Mission Indonesia

As chairman of Terjun’s Safe Water Committee, Alysyahbana oversees the water project and the promotion of healthy water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) behaviors such as handwashing. He also chooses to take his role even further by training committees from nearby communities in WASH promotion because he believes so deeply in its ability to change lives.

Alysyahbana has been a member of the committee since Terjun’s project commissioning in early 2015, and this continuity has helped him build and maintain trusting relationships with fellow residents. He knows his community well, and it is this understanding that enables him to be so effective in WASH promotion.

Last year, Alysyahbana noticed that the water treatment system had become a meeting point for community members as they collected safe water. So, he built a coffee shop next door to further invest in his community and create natural opportunities to educate residents about WASH practices.

Using locally roasted Sumatra coffee beans and safe water, the coffee shop offers healthy drinks to the residents of Terjun, along with daily opportunities for relationship building and WASH education. And it’s proven incredibly effective. Most of the residents we met shared that they learned about safe water and hygiene behaviors from fellow community members, and their health has improved dramatically as a result.

Community involvement and ownership are keys to the lasting success of every Water Mission safe water solution. Alysyahbana’s dedication to his community will impact lives in Terjun for generations to come.

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