Indonesia's Transgender Models Transform Waste Into Fashion

Transgender models in Indonesia are transforming Jakarta's waste into stunning looks.

Transcript

00:00 Polished in pink, the stunning look served up by this model, Agustina, is not what it appears at first glance.

00:07 Her outfit is fashioned from plastic bottles and wrappers.

00:11 She and other members of Indonesia's transgender community are parading dresses made from recycled materials.

00:29 These models aren't just resting on pretty, they're also making a positive impact.

00:35 This dance studio in Jakarta has recycled the city's trash and is reusing waste materials after sterilizing them.

00:43 Agustina says environmental issues are particularly pressing for her and the other performers.

00:50 It's very important because many of my friends work in the field as workers.

00:55 We find a lot of pollution and viruses that we don't know how to transmit.

01:04 We don't know how to do it and we end up going back to our homes.

01:08 The show is an innovative way to tackle the garbage problem in Indonesia's capital,

01:13 notoriously one of the most polluted cities in the world.

01:17 Around three quarters of the trash in the city's waterways is plastic.

01:22 And by using it, these social activists are not just serving up art, but also awareness.

01:29 We were walking around the village on August 17th,

01:34 and when students were showing their actions, that's when we saw the trash.

01:39 This visibility is especially meaningful for the marginalized group.

01:44 Even though same-sex relations aren't exactly criminalized in most of Indonesia,

01:49 queerness is stigmatized in the majority Muslim country.

01:53 Human Rights Watch has condemned the country's new criminal code

01:57 that makes consensual sex or cohabitation outside marriage an offense.

02:02 This law could particularly affect the LGBTQ+ community.

02:07 But here, some local residents welcome the fashion show for taking Jakarta's waste and transforming it.

02:21 Facing the double challenges of plastic waste and discrimination,

02:25 the event's curator reflects positively on its impact.

02:29 At the show's closing, the artists are celebrating its success

02:49 for making stereotypes sachet, or trashay, away.

02:54 Ethan Chen and Sally Yenson for Taiwan Plus.

03:01 Okay, a little bit more.