Transforming Waste Into Wonder

at Cowka, we redefine sustainability by turning discarded cow dung waste into stunning, functional furniture. Inspired by nature’s cycles of renewal, our mission is to bring eco-conscious design into everyday life, offering products that are as beautiful as they are meaningful.

Our Vision

To accelerate the shift towards eco-conscious and socially sustainable consumption by offering innovative and creative design pieces from waste materials.

Our Mission

To transform waste materials into functional design pieces. Our products carry a strong message and values that guide consumers towards sustainable living.

To empower local communities by creating meaningful employment opportunities that focus on marginalized groups. Our production fosters community engagement, ownership and craftsmanship.

The Man Behind Cowka

The force behind Cowka, reshaping furniture design through eco-conscious cow dung recycling techniques, for a greener future.

Nugraha, Adhi

is a teacher, researcher, and designer-maker. He was trained as a product designer in ITB Indonesia, and after his graduation, he worked for several years at a design firm in Germany and earned his MA in Craft Design in 1995 from the University of Art and Design Helsinki UIAH Finland. Later he completed his doctoral study in 2012 at the same university (today is Aalto University). After moving back to Indonesia in 2013, besides teaching in ITB, he has been actively involved in development projects for crafts and creative industries in Indonesia. Nugraha also works independently as a designer in his own design studio and workshop in Bandung. His interests are craft, design, community development, creative economy, sustainability, socio-cultural aspects in design, and tradition-based design.

From Research to Business:

The story of ITB’s Center for Cultural and Environmental Products and Cowka tackling environmental and societal problems

Backstory

Cowka’s story began as a response to a problem. In Bukatanah, a village in Western Java, dairy farming has been a popular occupation for two decades. With a rising number of cattle in the area, waste processing facilities had not been able to keep up with the development and cow waste was starting to negatively affect local water, land and air quality

2021:
Roots in Research

Recognizing the problems related to cow dung in Bukatanah and worldwide, a research group from Institute Technology of Bandung (ITB) started to look for solutions. The scope of the problem was identified as a socio-environmental problem and the research adopted a design driven approach involving local residents in the problem solving. A material lab was built in Bukatanah village to look for ways to process cow dung.

2022:
Hard Work

With the lead of Adhi Nugraha, head of the research project, studies about the possibilities of cow dung took a direction towards a composite material. Multiple workshops were held with local residents of Bukatanah village to develop a suitable system for local involvement.

2023:
Breakthrough

The research had made substantial breakthroughs and a cow dung based composite material was developed! The first products made from cow dung composite were lamps, speakers and pots. The research gained attraction and a selection of the products were exhibited in The Museum of Modern Arts, New York. The development of the material continued, employing local women in the production process.

Cow dung was successfully extracted from the environment and turned into design pieces. A patent for the production process was filed.

2024:
A Year of Change

While the research group continued to improve the material and examine its impact in the local environment and society, a change was coming. The research project had reached its goals by publishing a patent.

To keep the development in progress and existing people employed, Cowka was born. Organised as a company, Cowka is able to continue delivering impact by supporting the activity through a wider range of funding. Cowka continues to work with researchers, designers and local makers involved in the project to ensure continuity of the development. Cowka also carries the same values of environmental and societal sustainability, set at the beginning of the research journey.

2025:
Development Continues

Cowka stands as a testimony on how community involvement, scientific research and design innovation can tackle global issues at the grass root level. Cowka invests to grow the activity to further expand the positive impact this technology can deliver. In 2025 Cowka also aims to spread eco-awareness by making cow dung products available for consumers.