Water Unite is proud to co-sponsor two of the eight awards of the Alquity Transforming Lives Foundation supporting innovative plastics schemes in India and Kenya. The 2019 winners will benefit from up to $600,000 (£498,000) in investments.
We will be awarding $50,000 (£42,000) to Plastics For Change in India, and Gjenge Makers in Kenya, two innovative organisations focused on the UN Sustainable Development goals of Improving livelihoods, productive employment and decent work for all.
Plastics For Change has developed a marketplace platform that connects plastics wastepickers from some of the most marginalised communities in India to global markets and ensures a consistent supply of high quality recycled plastic for brands. Their mission is to change the social and environmental impact of plastic, helping organisations transition to the use of recycled plastics and create sustainable and safe livelihoods for those the base of the recycling supply chain.
The Water Unite co-sponsored award will help Plastics For Change accelerate the development of recycling infrastructure by creating markets for plastics waste, transforming more lives and creating inclusive and fair incomes for thousands of India’s informal waste workers.
The other co-sponsored award recipient, Gjenge Makers, is a social enterprise in Nairobi, Kenya, with the goal of becoming the major provider of durable, recycled construction products throughout the African continent. Their vision is to promote a recycling and upcycling culture in addition to proving sustainable housing, while creating job opportunities for some of the most excluded and impoverished sections of society.
With the award, Gjenge Makers are better able to expand their current workforce of 112 people from marginalised communities, providing more jobs to people who otherwise would not have the opportunity to work, accelerating their recycling program to reach more sections of society with sustainable housing options.
“Water Unite is extremely proud to be associated with the Alquity Transforming Lives Foundation and to be co-sponsoring two of the awards in 2019,” said Christopher K. Sellers, CEO. “We are thrilled that both Plastics for Change and Gjenge Makers have been recognised for their outstanding work in tackling plastics pollution and creating sustainable employment, helping to transform thousands of lives in Indian and Kenya. We look forward to working with both organisations in the months and years to come.”
The Alquity Transforming Lives awards supports non-profit organisations particularly those supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goal to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth. Plastics for Change and Gjenge Makers, along with the other six award recipients, were recognised at a gala event on 9 September 2019 at ZSL London Zoo.
