From harmful and polluting waste to useful, resistant, and practical objects. We could thus summarize the principle of recycling, whatever it is, and it is certainly not something new. However, when we learn of virtuous experiences like the one we are about to discuss, we can only be pleasantly surprised at their ability to encompass many benefits in one project.
From the brilliant mind of a Kenyan woman, in a national context where the standard of living is certainly not easy and where success is not within everyone’s reach, an idea was born that really deserves to be applauded. What is so special about her? She recycles plastic waste to create bricks that are much stronger than cement, all thanks to machines and processes that she herself designed.
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image credit: UN Environment Program / Youtube
Her name is Nzambi Matee and she is one of those people who, despite obstacles, decides to pursue a noble goal and do whatever it takes to achieve it. Struck by the impact of plastic on the environment of her country and on ecosystems around the world, this materials engineer decided to act, by creating a startup whose history quickly made the rounds of the web.
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image credit: Gjenge Makers Ltd / Facebook
It is nothing new, unfortunately, that plastic is slowly but surely contributing to the devastation of Earth’s environment , the only one we have at our disposal for a living. So, Nzambi decided to transform something destructive into “constructive”, ecological and super resistant objects .
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image credit: UN Environment Program / Youtube
His company, Gjenge Makers , recycles plastic and produces bricks, receiving and buying plastic waste from all these companies which produce it day after day and end up polluting. The machines designed by Matee, using high and low density polyethylene, through a series of processes and the use of sand , allow the production of special bricks, of varying thickness and color, but all characterized by a very large resistance.
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image credit: UN Environment Program / Youtube
These elements are five to seven times stronger than cement , which makes them ideal for uses such as flooring or other structures that must withstand heavy loads. The cost ? About $ 7.70 per square meter, for a production facility that produces around 1,500 “plastic” bricks per day and claims to have recycled up to 20 tonnes of waste since 2017.
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image credit: UN Environment Program / Youtube
Nzambi’s ambitions, however, do not and will not end there. Confident of her project, this Kenyan woman aims to increase her production, which obviously involves recycling even more and protecting the planet from the devastating effects of human activities. It only remains for us to congratulate her!
Source used:
https://www.youtube.com/
https://gjenge.co.ke/
Reuters