Jakarta Provincial Government together with Australian Embassy held an art exhibition entitled Ghost Nets: Awakening the Drifting Giants at Bahari Museum.

to preserve the environment

The exhibition that was opened by Jakarta Governor, Rano Karno, Thursday (3/20) will be held up to August 31, 2025.

Rano said that this exhibition is a form of collaboration between Jakarta Provincial Government and the Australian Embassy to increase public awareness of the importance of preserving marine ecosystems.

"We are reminded of the damaging impacts on coral reefs and the dangers to marine life, through artwork that highlights marine debris, particularly ghost nets or lost, abandoned or discarded marine nets," Rano said.

As a coastal city, Rano added, Jakarta has problems with waste management in the ocean. He hopes that this exhibition can provide valuable lessons about marine waste management.

Rano continued that waste management in rivers and lakes is different from the ocean. Much of the waste in the ocean is buried deep and has the potential to damage the ecosystem.

"This exhibition not only provides an interesting educational experience. But also inspires all parties to preserve the environment , marine and coastal ecosystems and overcome climate change, for a better future," Rano added.

Meanwhile, Australian Chargé d'Affaires to Indonesia, Gita Kamath explained that the exhibition features 18 hand-woven artworks in the form of shoals of fish, sea turtles and manta rays.

All the artworks displayed, Gita explained, are made from fishing trawl waste (ghost nets) assembled by the Australian Torres Strait Islander artists group, Erub Arts.

In this exhibition, visitors can participate in a workshop on making mini stingrays from fishing nets. Then there is also a workshop related to education on waste management and impacts in the ocean.

"The exhibition creates a platform to explore environmental challenges, including plastic waste reduction and marine conservation," Gita stated.