Young people are often described as ‘the future’. Rather than waiting for change to happen, we believe we can play an active role in creating positive change today. That is why we are participating in the Your World Competition, an international video competition organized by the British Council for students from British Council Partner Schools worldwide. This year’s theme is “Smarter Choices, Stronger Future,” based on SDG 12: Responsible consumption & production. The competition invites students to produce a three-minute social action video that highlights social issues within their communities and presents innovative solutions to address them.

Right from the start, as we began brainstorming ideas, we established one clear indicator of success: our project had to create a positive impact on the greatest number of people we could realistically reach. We wanted our initiative not only to be more than just a creative exercise but to drive genuine change. We looked closely at our surroundings and realized that the most meaningful place to start was our own school community. We came to understand that creating lasting change is not only about solving existing environmental problems, but also about preventing them from happening in the first place. By focusing on our school ecosystem, we saw a powerful opportunity to instill smarter habits early on, ensuring that the impact ripples outward from a place we call home.Upon closer observation of our daily school life, we identified our biggest environmental challenges: Plastic & Paper Waste. To solve the problem at the root, we developed a comprehensive project concept and named it SNAP-Week (Say No To All Plastic & Paper Waste). We chose the name to be simple, memorable, and easy for our audience to understand and connect with. SNAP-Week was designed as a week-long campaign aimed at reducing single-use waste in daily school activities by avoiding single-use packaging in our school.

We then presented our project concept to our teacher and received valuable guidance to refine our ideas. After finalizing the implementation plan, we promoted SNAP Week through posters, social media announcements, and the school’s central audio system to ensure the message reached the wider school community. We also briefed the canteen stalls to stop using single-use packaging and instead serve food directly into students’ lunch boxes. To support this transition, we provided a lending system consisting of 40 lunch boxes and 40 utensil sets, which students could borrow, wash after use, and return.

When the week finally arrived, all the hard work we had poured into our project was put to the test. Every morning, we gathered at the canteen to count and recheck the lunch boxes before monitoring their use throughout the day. During every break, we worked alongside canteen vendors and fellow students to ensure the smooth transition away from paper and plastic packaging. We also spent a significant amount of time washing and preparing returned lunch boxes for reuse, as the demand remained constant throughout the week.

After the implementation period ended, our work was not yet finished. We still needed to record the introduction to our video, collect testimonies from members of the SMA Santa Ursula Jakarta community, and edit all the media we had gathered. Once everything was completed and submitted, all that remained was to wait for the results. On April 23rd, 2026, the Your World Competition winners were announced. Although we were proud of our project, we were uncertain how it would compare to the many inspiring entries from around the world.

As the announcement began, our nerves were overwhelming. Then, to our amazement, SMA Santa Ursula Jakarta was announced as Indonesia’s National Winner. Moments later, we were also named the Regional Winner of East Asia. The shock quickly turned into immense joy and gratitude. What had started as a simple idea had become a project with real and lasting impact on both our environment and our community. More importantly, SNAP Week demonstrated that meaningful change can begin with simple daily choices. We hope this initiative will continue to inspire our school community to adopt more sustainable habits and contribute to a greener future.