Recycling and Waste Management Donovan Copley: Words of encouragement

recycling & th e waste management Award

KABEGA PRIMARY ECO-LIFE

Kabega Primary raises the bar when it comes to environmental awareness education. The school was named PlasticSA’s top recycling school in South Africa in 2013 & 2016. The school not only focuses on recycling but various aspects of environmental education. The school is actively involved in the community with various organisations linking with the school’s activities. The school made presentations at the Institute for Waste Management of South Africa, Sustainable Seas Trust and WESSA. Learners also visit the Baakens River and beaches around Port Elizabeth to do clean-ups. There is a recycling station at the school with Groenspoor-prefects to assist other learners and members of the public with sorting recyclables. The school has been placed first in the school’s competition of The Waste Trade Company for numerous terms. Tops and tags are collected and have funded three wheelchairs to less fortunate learners with disabilities through this initiative. The environmental activities of Kabega Primary School have reached out to involve all the learners, parents, old-age homes, residents, businesses and churches in the surrounding community. The school has also obtained a WESSA International Flag and is currently on Platinum 1 status. The work done by Kabega Primary for environmental conservation is truly inspiring

IMAGINED EARTH: REVERSE VENDING MACHINE

Launched in 2015, Imagined Earth is a forward-thinking recycling business that allows you to earn money and rewards for your recycling. We provide reverse vending machines to locational partners such as retailers and business for use by employees and the general public in recovering and rewarding their recyclable packaging waste. We have built a custom platform allowing partners and users greater insight into their recycling statistics whilst educating them about recycling at the same time. We have also built customer loyalty functionality to allow brands to incentivize the recovery of their packaging waste adding further benefit to RVM users and in turn allowing brands to achieve their sustainability targets. Our offering is the first of its kind on African shores available through SMS, MMS or through our mobile app allowing insight to the user with regard to their recycling behaviour, learning about the circular economy, and getting rewarded. Our business is built on the shared economy principle with a focus on how we can empower people to live more sustainably.

VIRGIN ACTIVE, CONSTANTIA CLUB: NET ZERO WASTE

Virgin Active Constantia Health Club, is committing to divert 93% of their waste and to offset the remaining 7% by purchasing carbon offsets through impactChoice to support the Kariba REDD+ Project. 12 months of carbon offsetting has been purchased to date. The Kariba REDD+ Project is a forest conservation project aimed at providing sustainable livelihood opportunities for poor communities in Northern Zimbabwe, a region suffering from deforestation, poverty and drought. Virgin Active Constantia achieved a Net Zero Waste Level 2 certification, using modelled data. Virgin Active Constantia waste project was the first of the company’s kind in South Africa and the vision is that every single one of Virgin Active clubs will achieve net zero certification in the near future in all of the disciplines, energy, water, waste and ecology. Virgin Active`1 Constantia achievement is setting the standard for the company’s greater goal in the race towards net zero.