Ever heard the phrase, "One man's trash is another man's treasure"? Since its founding, SAFI has believed in the power of turning waste into a resource. With a little creative thinking, communities will revise their perception of the available assets and begin to reduce their dependence on scarce natural resources.
SAFI understands that no one sets out to harm the environment. We believe that, if people are given alternative means to meet their needs for fuel and income, they will embrace the opportunity to conserve their precious natural resources.
SAFI understands that no one sets out to harm the environment. We believe that, if people are given alternative means to meet their needs for fuel and income, they will embrace the opportunity to conserve their precious natural resources.
Laikipia Recycling Centre
Establishing a community recycling centre in Laikipia has long been SAFI's dream. In 2012, our proposal was accepted by the UNDP-GEF Small Grants Programme, and preparations are now underway to make this dream a reality.
SAFI envisions the recycling centre as just one part of an improved waste management system for Laikipia's rural towns. The funding also supports mobilizations, trainings, and public dustbin distribution to strengthen community waste management capacity. In addition to centralized plastics recycling, the grant will help us to establish small-scale recycling initiatives, such as basket-weaving and production of fuel briquettes, within rural towns in the region.
The recycling center itself will serve as both a storage and manufacturing centre, as well as a training facility and resource centre for community groups. In the future, SAFI hopes the centre will serve as a community demonstration space for a broad spectrum of activities related to environment, health, and empowerment.
One central structure complete and additional construction and equipment acquisition are underway. The centre is located in Jua Kali, approximately 20 minutes from Nanyuki, just off of the road to Dol Dol. Contact us if you'd like to come out, see the center and some of our recycling activities, or drop off recyclable products. Right now, our greatest needs are plastic bags and plastic bottles, but let us know if you have any other recyclable waste, and we'll see if we can find a use for it.
In the near future, the centre will also serve as a place to buy and sell recycled products, and as production increases, we also plan to open a small shop for our products in Nanyuki town. Here are some of the products that will be available for purchase starting in October 2013.
SAFI envisions the recycling centre as just one part of an improved waste management system for Laikipia's rural towns. The funding also supports mobilizations, trainings, and public dustbin distribution to strengthen community waste management capacity. In addition to centralized plastics recycling, the grant will help us to establish small-scale recycling initiatives, such as basket-weaving and production of fuel briquettes, within rural towns in the region.
The recycling center itself will serve as both a storage and manufacturing centre, as well as a training facility and resource centre for community groups. In the future, SAFI hopes the centre will serve as a community demonstration space for a broad spectrum of activities related to environment, health, and empowerment.
One central structure complete and additional construction and equipment acquisition are underway. The centre is located in Jua Kali, approximately 20 minutes from Nanyuki, just off of the road to Dol Dol. Contact us if you'd like to come out, see the center and some of our recycling activities, or drop off recyclable products. Right now, our greatest needs are plastic bags and plastic bottles, but let us know if you have any other recyclable waste, and we'll see if we can find a use for it.
In the near future, the centre will also serve as a place to buy and sell recycled products, and as production increases, we also plan to open a small shop for our products in Nanyuki town. Here are some of the products that will be available for purchase starting in October 2013.
Plastics
Plastic Fence Posts and Tiles
A KEMA staff member pours melted plasticUsing technology invented and developed in Nairobi by the Kayole Environmental Management Association (KEMA), we will be making plastic fence posts and construction tiles by melting and mixing plastics and pouring them into molds of various shapes and sizes.
Making these products allow us to serve uses that are in high-demand in Laikipia using a low-tech, locally developed technology, while at the same time re-using plastic waste and reducing the use of nonrenewable resources, such as wood.
Making these products allow us to serve uses that are in high-demand in Laikipia using a low-tech, locally developed technology, while at the same time re-using plastic waste and reducing the use of nonrenewable resources, such as wood.
Baskets and Craft Products
With the objective of promoting hygiene and environmental preservation, SAFI is training organized groups to reduce, re-use and recycle polythene and other plastics through weaving and crocheting. Baskets and other finished products are then sold, generating income and enabling the women to better support themselves and their families.
Organic Materials
Fuel from household and agricultural waste
Richard contemplates recycled briquettes
Communities in Laikipia rely heavily on both firewood and charcoal for fuel, contributing to massive deforestation that threatens the environment as well as livelihoods. People here do not know enough about alternative fuel sources, which are often unaffordable anyway.
SAFI teaches local communities how to turn abundant organic waste into inexpensive sources of fuel, such as fuel briquettes and biomass charcoal. In addition to providing training, education, and marketing about recycled fuel sources, SAFI will provide the start-up capital for community-based briquette-making businesses, and will engage in the production, sale, and distribution of these briquettes at the Recycling Centre and Nanyuki Store.
SAFI teaches local communities how to turn abundant organic waste into inexpensive sources of fuel, such as fuel briquettes and biomass charcoal. In addition to providing training, education, and marketing about recycled fuel sources, SAFI will provide the start-up capital for community-based briquette-making businesses, and will engage in the production, sale, and distribution of these briquettes at the Recycling Centre and Nanyuki Store.
Opuntia juice and wine
Our work is about finding creative uses for materials that are seen as useless. Sometimes that means trash, but not always. Opuntia cactus is an invasive plant species abundant in the arid plains of Laikipia North. Pastoralists curse it as harmful to their livestock; conservationists defend it as food for baboons and other wildlife.
SAFI is working with local groups to turn the fruits of this cactus into a beverage that can be sold for profit.
SAFI is working with local groups to turn the fruits of this cactus into a beverage that can be sold for profit.