Altered carbon: new futures for plastic waste
The human race has been freeze dried and vacuum packed into a dilemma of our own making. It is possible that our greatest contribution to the unfolding human story will not be Elon Musk’s moon-shot to Mars, cures for cancer or the wonders of on-demand television, but to hostage our futures to a product that is as anodyne as it is brutally damaging to the health of the planet. That brilliantly useful ligature that is plastic.
At TechforTrade, the charity where I am proud to serve as a board member, we have launched a small, but important, response to that dilemma. Waste plastic is a raw material that combines abundance with shamefully unexploited value, particularly across parts of the developing world. Our solution takes that material, converts it into filament that can be used in an open-source designed 3D printer, and renders something new and productive and enduring — in this instance a 3D printed microscope.
TechforTrade has developed the world’s first low cost open source system for recycling plastic water bottles for 3D printing as well as building 3D printers from recycled e-waste. We plan to trial this technology by producing 100 scientific microscopes, designed by Cambridge University, as an aid for interactive STEM teaching in Kenyan schools. Tools such as microscopes enhance the learning experience, and are taken for granted in developed countries, yet in most Kenyan schools they are an unaffordable luxury.
Can you help us take this idea to the next stage of its development? We are thrilled to have been accepted by the prestigious Global Giving crowdfunding platform to present our idea to the world as a participant in their Accelerator programme. If you have an interest in sustainability, technology, innovation, education or manufacturing — all are embodied by our product and the approach we are taking. Details of our campaign and how you can support us are on the Global Giving website here.
Why microscopes?
We have started with microscopes because it allows us to assess the multiplier effect of investing in the local manufacture of high end products with a particular social value. We can monitor the impact on the educational attainment of science students who may otherwise have been assigned the task of drawing a microscope, but never actually get the chance to use one in the classroom!
Just £9,500 will allow us to trial the local production and distribution of 100 microscopes to Kenyan schools. Whilst the cost of making the microscope and purchasing a set of educational slides comes in at a relatively modest £29, this funding will allow us to conduct full trial preparation, teacher training, monitoring and evaluation, including the drafting of a final report and recommendations, together with the communications plan, travel costs and outreach necessary to apply the lessons of the trial in other settings and with other educational products.
Our vision: a Digital Blacksmiths network across Africa
TechforTrade has launched the Digital Blacksmiths Network, a collective of maker entrepreneurs using 3D printing to build social businesses with start-ups currently operating in Kenya, Ghana and Tanzania. Our vision is that this network will expand and democratise manufacturing across the continent: with local needs, jobs and customers at the forefront.
In areas where recycling facilities are unavailable, our filament production system not only begins to address the local waste processing issue, it also delivers an improved financial return for local waste pickers. In addition, expensive items such as microscopes are often imported and incur high duties, making them even more costly. Our approach will reduce those costs dramatically, putting production and repair into the hands of local manufacturers.
Support our mission
If you would like to be part of our pioneering response to one of the issues of our age then please support us by donating here to our crowdfunding campaign. Please also share it with those on your network who may be interested to come on board with either financial or in-kind support.
To find out more about what we are trying to achieve and how you can help, please get in touch with me via LinkedIn or contact our CEO William Hoyle on William.Hoyle@techfortrade.org. Full details of the ethical filament production process are available here and details of our Digital Blacksmiths manufacturing facilities are available here. Follow us on Twitter @techfortrade.
Richard Brophy is a consultant on corporate responsibility and sustainability and a board member of TechforTrade. This post was written in a personal capacity.
