Creating Low-cost Construction Materials Using Recycled Plastic Waste

Posted on February 12, 2021  Comments (1)

Nzambi Matee is a materials engineer and head of Gjenge Makers (in Kenya), which produces sustainable low-cost construction materials made of recycled plastic waste and sand. For her work, Nzambi Matee was recently named a Young Champions of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Programme.

Building blocks for a greener Nairobi

Through trial and error, she and her team learned that some plastics bind together better than others. Her project was given a boost when Matee won a scholarship to attend a social entrepreneurship training programme in the United States of America. With her paver samples packed in her luggage, she used the material labs in the University of Colorado Boulder to further test and refine the ratios of sand to plastic.

It is wonderful to see young people using an understanding of engineering to find ways to improve the world. Taking waste plastic and creating usable products will help reduce pollution and create a better world. We need quite a bit of effort to deal with plastic waste, so I look forward to learning about many more ideas turned into practical solutions in the real world.

Related: Cleaning Up the Plastic Pollution in Our Oceans – Pedal Powered Washing Machine – Protecting Cows with Lion Lights – Drone Deliveries to Hospitals in Rwanda

One Response to “Creating Low-cost Construction Materials Using Recycled Plastic Waste”

  1. Anonymous
    June 16th, 2021 @ 6:52 am

    How is it possible in developing countries to create ideas to reduce the environmental impact of the construction sector. And, supposedly, in modern countries that have more resources, there is no serious policy for the construction sector with ideas that really add value. I don’t get it! Best regards and thanks for sharing

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