Earth Company x The Asia Foundation & Luce Scholars

The long wait is over. Earth Company and Mana Earthly Paradise have just hosted the largest international group since the onset of the pandemic.

As part of the Luce Scholars Wrap-Up gathering, the Asia Foundation and Earth Company worked together to curate impact excursions that would take 55 American scholars to understand the diverse issues on the island and discover the means to tackle them.

The large group of scholars were split into five thematic journeys, where with the help of several other local organizations, each individual group would get its own insightful, thought-provoking, and tailor-made journey. The five journeys were:

1. The Wild West, with Five Pillar Experience

Scholars set off to explore Negara in West Bali to see how villages work as a community to regenerate their inner and outer ecosystems.

2. The Green Hills of Tabanan, with Talasi & Sarinbuana

An exploration to the lush rainforests at the foothills of Mount Batukaru and seeing how agroforestry regenerates and empowers the local community.

3. Disconnect to Reconnect, with Astungkara Way

A sweaty and muddy, but eye-opening two-day pilgrims trail walk that discovered regenerative agriculture methods with local rice farmers in Bali.

4. Social Innovation in Bali, with Earth Company & Mana Earthly Paradise

The scholars were invited to explore each end of the sustainability spectrum in Bali. From witnessing the unimaginable amounts of trash clogging up Bali’s rivers, to experiencing the sustainable transition in Bali’s mainstream tourism at Potato Head.

5. From Peak to Shore, with Living Seas, MuntiGunung, Palmira, and Garam Amed

Last but not least, this thematic journey invited the scholars to work with local communities to preserve and learn how to leverage their natural heritage, in the eastern coastline of Bali.