A Quiet Revolution: ASRI, Planetary Health, and Stepping Beyond "I Can't" to a Possible World
- Aya Matsuyama
- 14 hours ago
- 4 min read
Each of us, at some point, draws an invisible, self-imposed line. It is the limit of "I can't do this," or the pervasive feeling of powerlessness—the belief that "I am too small to change anything." This sense often arises when possibility seems distant or entirely absent.
Yet, the feeling of “It’s impossible” is not a dead end: it is the quiet, crucial signal that an expanse of untapped potential lies just beyond the line we have drawn. The moment we feel overwhelmed, believing we can't manage, is precisely the opportunity to open a door to possibility.
The Stark, Brutal Choice: Survival Versus the Future
Across the globe, tropical rainforests are vanishing. While the reasons are complex, the ultimate driver is financial—money for some to accumulate wealth, and for others, money simply to survive the day.
This is the stark, brutal choice: secure today’s meal by cutting a tree, or risk a future where succeeding generations inherit a planetary environment stripped of the resources to sustain them. Children, perhaps born with great, world-shifting talents, are instead focused on the immediate necessity of staying alive, without the opportunity to cultivate their potential for the greater good. Many people, in many contexts, can recognise a similar conflict.
A Thoughtful Response to Chaos: The ASRI Project
Here, however, is a compelling example of a small action that moves a seemingly insurmountable, chaotic situation, initiating a larger, quiet tide of change. This is the project led by the organization ASRI (Alam Sehat Lestari).
I had the opportunity to meet the Director of Resource Mobilization at Yayasan, Febriani (Nur Febriani Wardi) and listen to her story in person. I happened to sit next to her during lunch at an international conference in Bali (B1G1 - Time to Rise). She was petite but possessed a powerful sincerity in her words. I still clearly recall her bright eyes when she was telling the story.
ASRI's methodology provides an integrated, living blueprint that shatters the dilemma—a thoughtful response proving that the choice between survival and the future is not mutually exclusive, but a creative bridge.
1. The Eco-Status Discount: Linking Health to the Forest
Based on a principle of "Radical Listening," ASRI’s clinic (established in 2007) provides high-quality, affordable healthcare. This immediately removes the stark choice between community well-being and cutting down trees for cash.
Crucially, the clinic uses an Eco-Status Discount system. Villages showing no logging activity receive the highest discount—up to 70%—on medical bills. This mechanism uses an immediate, essential need—health—as a quiet, continuous incentive for community-led forest preservation.
2. Non-Cash Payment: Investing in Tomorrow
The clinic also accepts non-cash payments, allowing patients to barter for treatment with items that regenerate the environment and support local skills. Accepted currencies include handicrafts, compost, and, significantly, tree seedlings.
ASRI has received 172,048 seedlings from patients between 2014-2024 (with a further 10,000 anticipated in 2025!).
These seedlings are then used in the reforestation of critical orangutan habitat corridors.
To date, ASRI, together with National Park authority and local communities has planted more than 700,000 seedlings, restoring more than 435 hectares of degraded land.
3. Chainsaw Buyback: Transitioning Livelihoods
Addressing the root cause of illegal logging, ASRI operates a Chainsaw Buyback program, assisting loggers in transitioning to sustainable livelihoods.
Since 2017, the program has helped 339 ex-loggers.
Active loggers have transitioned into 8 business groups across 43 different business types, including agriculture, aquaculture, and retail.
This approach is not about prohibition; it is about gently redirecting the inherent energy and talent of individuals toward new, viable opportunities that do not require the destruction of the forest. Today, more than 50 species of wildlife have been identified returning to the reforested areas.
The Quiet Power of the Possible World
ASRI’s work is a quiet yet profound demonstration that solutions are not about choosing one thing over another—survival or the future—but about finding a creative bridge between them. Ideas are limitless; this is not a dead end. This is how we realize a Possible World.
As a possibility catalyst, we offer the Possible World Experience (PWE)—immersive sessions designed for individuals/teams to explore, experience, and unlock their personal/team possibilities. When I learned about Febriani's story, a true exemplar of this creative bridge, I had to invite her to one of our sessions to share it. Though she didn't know she would participate in a world creation simulation—a main component of the session— her powerful narrative resonated deeply with participants, planting seeds of hope and inspiring new pathways for action. (A full report on the impact of this session is available here).
The world we inhabit is shaped by our mindsets and our actions. Let the feeling of "impossible" be the gentle prompt to look further. In this subtle shift of perspective, the door to the Possible World opens before us.
The Possible World Experience
What is the "Impossible" you are facing today?
That boundary you feel is not a wall—it's a door. Join the Possible World Experience to find the quiet signal in your limit, and begin forging the creative bridge to the world you know is possible.
The Impossible is the Prompt: Find the Signal, Forge the Bridge.
Every World is up to our Mindset and Actions. Possible World
