The 2019 Biology student essay competition team chaired by Fatika Soraya Taufik with 4 members namely Amelia Rifki Alifiah, Alodia Marisa Artamevia, Hasna Nur Aini, and Alifa Amalia on January 10 2023 won a bronze medal in an international scale essay competition under the guidance of Sukirno, S. .Si., M.Sc., Ph.D. The International Agriculture Technology Essay Competition (INTEGRATION) was held by the Agritech Research and Study Club of Universitas Brawijaya. This competition takes place from 12 December 2022 to. January 10, 2023. The theme being carried out is “Innovation on Multidisciplinary Integration for Agriculture Development” with 4 sub-themes, which are (1) Food Security and Innovation; (2) Bioinformatic Application on Agricultural Technology; (3) Agriculture for Human Welfare; and (4) Sustainable Bioenergy. From the 4 sub-themes, Soraya and the team compiled an essay that led to the Agriculture for Human Welfare sub-theme, with the title “Phymose: Innovation of Eco-Friendly Organic Pesticide Using Leaf Extract of Cutleaf Groundcherry (Physalis angulata var. pendula (Rydb.) Waterf.) and Sensitive Plant (Mimosa pudica L.) as an Alternative for Controlling Pests and Diseases in Horticultural Plants to Increase Agricultural Productivity System”.
The essay is structured based on the problems that occur as a result of the normalization of the use of synthetic/chemical pesticides which are detrimental to various aspects of life. Without realizing it, the use of synthetic pesticides in the long term can cause various diseases in humans, encourage pollution of the environment, and cause resistance to pests and plant diseases. Based on this problem, Soraya and the team initiated an innovation in the manufacture of organic pesticides derived from the use of weeds, which are cut leaf ground cherry and touch-me-not plant, whose leaf extracts can be used as natural ingredients to control pests and diseases in horticultural crops. It aims to increase agricultural productivity and human well-being in a much safer way than the use of synthetic pesticides. It was hoped that this essay can be an additional tool for readers considering the urgency of the need for organic pesticides needed to support the quality of agricultural productivity and also the welfare of people in Indonesia.
From ± 200 teams that took part in this competition, Soraya and her team won a bronze medal in the Agriculture for Human Welfare category with a total score of 8420 points. Soraya and the team hope that by participating in this competition, other students will also be motivated to be able to express creative and innovative ideas in a work in the field of writing in other competitions.
