Updated: Jul 9, 2021
By: Zed Avecilla, Executive Director, Lighthouse Legacy Foundation
Last October 18, I attended the Remaker Space Workshop Demo event located at Thames International Business School in Quezon City. The event was hosted by Pure Oceans, a marine conservation social enterprise based in Batangas, together with Precious Plastic Philippines (PPP) who provided the recycling machines that were used that day. Remaker Space is a dedicated area for exploring upcycling technology & techniques. This is one of the main reasons why I attended this event, to learn and get some upcycling ideas. I believe that art, design, and innovation will play an important role in solving our growing trash problem particularly plastics.
Backstory
Last month, Fiona Falkner, Project Head of Plastic Solutions, informed us about their “Solutions Hub” idea, a privatized MRFs (Material Recovery Facilities) for communities without reliable access to waste management & treatment. The goal was to help achieve a pollution-free Philippines by teaching basic waste management strategies & providing simple solutions to waste. Fiona informed us that they will donate a compression oven made by PPP to start off the project in Subic Bay, however, we will still need at least a plastic shredder machine to complete the initial setup of the Solutions Hub. This led us to Butte Metz, founder of PPP, a talented mechanical engineer who has done an amazing job in designing and building the Precious Plastic recycling machines. Through the generosity of our friends and supporters, we were able to purchase a shredder which we were able to use during International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) Day last September 21.
Coming Together
Collaboration allows individuals to come together on a common platform and work towards the achievement of a common goal by thinking, brainstorming and offering various perspectives to provide solutions. During the activity, I was reunited with some of our previous partners in ICC, Mr. Eric Raymundo, a board director for an NGO called the Society for Sustainable Tourism. I was also introduced to Vic Yap from the Rotary Club of Makati - Paseo de Roxas and President of SIM Technologies Inc a solutions provider for design and innovation. I was pleased to have met a fellow adventurer, host and film-maker, and the founder of Plastic Tides, an awareness campaign on ocean plastic pollution, Juls Rodriguez. It was also nice to see representatives from the international media, NHK-World Japan, who was actually featuring the amazing woman behind this project, Pia Roxas-Ocampo, founder of Pure Oceans. Pia, as an avid diver and former creative director of one of the top creative agencies in the world, felt the need to intervene and use her talent to find solutions to this gigantic problem that is a major threat to our ocean and reefs.
What the Future Holds
The Remaker Space Workshop will help boost plastic recycling by providing a venue for anyone to use the Precious Plastic Machines and experiment on different ways to make use of recycled plastics. Check out their Facebook Page and schedule an appointment! We will see more collaboration and fusion of ideas in the coming future. These are the kind of events that fills our motivation tank, fuels our drive and inspires us to strive forward because it really helps us to feel that we are not alone. Collaboration makes it a lot easier and fun too!
If you want to know more about how you can help or if you have any idea on how to prevent plastics from ending up in our oceans and landfill, please email us at legacy@lighthousesubic.com