Kimberly-Clark India, in collaboration with the Plastics for Change India Foundation, announced ‘Project’ on World Environment Day, an initiative that will provide sustainable housing facilities to on-ground garbage collectors in India.
A total of 30 metric tonnes of single-use and multi-layered plastic will be recycled over six months in the Hubli-Dharwad district of Karnataka to build 15 dwellings.
‘Project’ is a step towards improving the well-being of a disadvantaged and marginalized group, in addition to immediately reducing plastic waste.
The idea will be expanded to various other sections of the country if it is effective. Kimberly-Clark will communicate with stakeholders across the value chain, from waste collectors to recyclers and waste processors, as part of its Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).
Kimberly-Clark has developed several projects and partnerships throughout the years to decrease its environmental footprint and improve people’s lives through purpose-driven actions. Mainak Dhar, Managing Director, Kimberly-Clark India, stated of the initiative’s association with Plastics for Change India Foundation, “In today’s rapidly evolving circular economy, it is vital to apply new solutions to improve our collective environmental imprint.”
One such project is our collaboration with the Plastics for Change India Foundation for Project, which provides us with a unique chance to both execute on our global sustainability strategy and make a genuine difference in the communities where we operate.” Channel partners such as Ricron Panels will collect and convert non-recyclable plastic garbage into sheets that will be utilized as the building material for these dwellings as part of a partnership with the Plastics for Change India Foundation.
The buildings are lighter and more durable than cement sheets or ply, can withstand wind speeds of up to 120 km/h, require no heating, and will last for nearly 30 years.
Each residence will provide employment possibilities for 30 waste pickers each day, in addition to enhanced sanitation and safe living conditions. “Project is a disruptive solution that tackles two critical and connected issues of our time: the need for recycling plastic and homelessness in the informal waste collector communities, who play the most critical role in waste management,” said Andrew Almack, CEO and Founder, Plastics for Change India Foundation. They are incredibly delighted to be collaborating with a firm like Kimberly-Clark, which places sustainability at the forefront of all it does, and we are certain that this effort will benefit both the environment and people’s lives. Kimberly-Clark has been recycling manufacturing waste for the past two decades, with a 96 percent diversion rate.
They want to be at the vanguard of the shift to a circular, reusable economy, helping to reduce waste while providing consumers with the items they want.
