Eco-friendly initiatives promote recycling during this emergency

Aluminum cans, tires, glass containers and plastic bottles can be transformed into decorations for the home or construction material. Photo: Ingimage

Recycling , disinfecting and saving are the three actions promoted by various organizations to encourage recycling and reduce the generation of garbage during the emergency . Plastic, glass, cardboard and aluminum are some of the materials that can have a second life thanks to these initiatives.

Pilar Ramos , director of Fundación Botellas de Amor Ecuador , explains that the idea is for people to take advantage of this moment that they are at home to learn more about waste separation . What is sought is that they store the recyclable materials and, once the isolation ends, deliver them to the recyclers , who depend on them as a source of income .

The Bottles of Love initiative focuses on flexible plastics that are generally thrown away. The process involves storing plastic bags, food wrappers, straws, or mixers in a plastic bottle. After the emergency, they can be delivered to the foundation so that they transform them into plastic wood and use them to build floors, benches and even houses.

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Recyclable materials become decorations and elements for construction. Photo: Courtesy Kelly Cabarcas

Ramos explains that the objective is not to produce more bottles, but through this exercise, people become aware of all the plastic packaging that is present in their lives and can reduce their consumption. The Foundation for Innovation and Environmental Research 2IA undertook a campaign since March to encourage the recycling of plastic, glass and cardboard in homes. Cristina Vallejo , co-founder of this organization , explains that the hashtag #Yoteguardo is used to spread advice on social networks about the reuse of products and their respective handling protocols . Vallejo also asks people to complete a survey that is on his page Web. In this, the information of the users is registered to know in which areas the waste is being stored. In this way, recyclers will be able to go to these points when the emergency is over.

Other initiatives focus on collecting recyclable materials to transform them into decorations. Kelly Cabarcas, creator of Dale Vida a la Lata , promotes the recycling of aluminum containers and glass jars.

Cabarcas says that she had to close her restaurant due to the emergency . This had less than seven months of operation . To relieve her stress, she began to paint the cans that she had in her home. When she realized that she no longer had any more containers, she decided to ask for empty cans in exchange for others already decorated. Now she, together with María Lola Guadalupe , is working on a new project to offer these cans with plants and create green spaces inside the house.