Reshaping Waste ~ a community recycling initiative

We’ve always known cleanup wouldn’t fix the plastic pollution problem, but when you’re overwhelmed and aren’t sure what else to do, it’s a really great place to start. Having invested more than 3000 hours cleaning up one beach at Manly Cove since June 2020 and seeing little difference; having sorted and counted over 1.5 tonnes of plastic waste items individually, mapping them on a spreadsheet and trying to pinpoint their sources; we have a much broader understanding of the problem, but we’ve learnt an obvious lesson - that cleanup alone isn’t the solution.

We’ve realised that ‘cleanup’ is a great starting point or introduction to the problem of waste. It’s a very hands-on, effective way of raising awareness (very visual for passers by) and it’s a great way to educate people. There’s nothing as powerful as counting 800 food wrappers by hand, that you’ve pulled off the beach or out of the ocean, and seeing brands you know and love, even consume on a regular basis. For these reasons, our community cleanup efforts and regular events continue… However, we’re shifting our language and attention away from the concept of ‘cleanup’ and refocusing our efforts towards data, innovation, empowerment and circularity. We talk a lot about the importance of stopping the waste at the source, adopting habits that avoid, reduce and reuse plastic items to prevent them ending up in the environment. For items already in use or disposed of we talk about recovery and recycling.

We’re Reshaping Waste both physically and conceptually; reimagining it and declaring it a precious resource - because what’s done is done, and every plastic item that’s ever been manufactured is here to stay. Whether it’s been binned and buried, littered or dumped at sea, burnt and sent into the atmosphere or literally hurled into space (that’s a real thing that happens), our aim is to put to a stop to the madness and find a way to use it. Our aim is to educate anyone who’ll listen and connect as many people as possible -communities, schools and businesses- to tangible, real solutions…

We’d love to see governments put their collective foot down and federal budgets on the table. We’d love to see consumers stop shopping single-use, with only convenience and ‘now’ in mind. We’d love to see the worlds’ biggest polluters like Coke, Pepsi, Nestle and Mars to STOP manufacturing cheap, plastic packaging all together and take responsibility for the damage they’ve caused… But for now we’ve stopped pointing the finger at others and we’re taking our first bold step with Reshaping Waste. Everyone’s invited to get involved.

For a long time we’ve talked about being able to do something meaningful with our waste, and finally we can. Not only can we remove it from the environment and divert some of it from landfill, but we can use it as a resource to create new things. We can use it as a learning opportunity for communities and young people across Sydney and we can use it as a symbol of hope and empowerment. We can connect schools and businesses to their own waste and break their plastics down, redesign and remanufacture it into something new. Recycling made accessible and easy… That’s what this project is all about!

All contributions are good ones as we really want this initiative to be driven and supported by community. Contact us here for more info or to get involved!