Sungai Watch co-founder Gary Bencheghib spoke with SBS Indonesian about why he and his siblings, despite being foreigners, have dedicated their lives to stopping plastic pollution in rivers across Bali and Java.
Gary Bencheghib is French, but Bali has been his home for 21 years. He and his siblings, Kelly and Sam, grew up on the island, and when they saw their home being destroyed by plastic - on beaches, in rice fields, and choking the rivers - they decided to act. That was 16 years ago.
The three siblings started a project called 'Make a Change Bali' to pick up rubbish on beaches. It eventually grew into 'Sungai Watch', an NGO that installs floating barriers on rivers across Bali and East Java to stop plastic from reaching the ocean.
Not everyone has welcomed their involvement. Bencheghib said some people question why foreigners are doing this work, and some have criticised them. But despite being visitors on foreign land, he said, plastic entering the ocean is everyone's problem.
Bencheghib said Sungai Watch has also opened his eyes to millions of Indonesians already doing this work without recognition. An estimated 3.7 million people in Indonesia make a living as waste pickers, he said. These people need to be empowered, not overlooked, he added.
In late March 2026, the three siblings launched "Run for Rivers," running 25 kilometres a day from Bali toward Jakarta to campaign for expanding their work to Java, the most populated island in the world with 160 million residents. The run covered 1,205 kilometres over 58 days. On 26 May, they were received by Vice President Gibran Rakabuming at the Vice Presidential Palace, who offered to help connect them with corporate sponsors for expansion into Central and West Java, according to an official statement from the Vice President's office.
Asked what Indonesia means to him personally, Bencheghib's answer was simple: it is home, and he wants to make sure his children and grandchildren can enjoy the same home he was lucky enough to grow up in.
Listen to the full SBS Indonesian conversation with Gary Bencheghib to hear his story in detail.
