Woman recycles and turns plastic into building bricks

Recycling plastic is the key to saving planet Earth, because when it is not treated, it clogs sewers, dirties the streets and the sea. This is a global problem and Nzambi Matee, a young materials engineer from Kenya, created an innovative solution to help mitigate this problem.

Matee founded Gjenge Makers, a company that transforms plastics into fully sustainable and durable building bricks. In addition, they are made on machines designed by the engineer herself.

The bricks created by Matee are stronger than conventional concrete and are gaining attention from around the world, including the UN.

We were tired (of nothing being done). Plastic waste is not a Kenyan problem, but a global one and if we are unable to offer practical solutions, asking people to adopt a culture of recycling can be challenging.

Matee and his employees make 500 to 1,500 bricks a day. Each piece has an approximate cost of $ 7.7 dollars. Its manufacturing process consists of recycling different types of plastic, such as low and high density polyethylene, as well as polypropylene. They are then mixed with sand, heated, and compressed into shape.

Matee started this project in 2017 and has so far recycled more than 20 tons of plastic. However, it expects to recycle 50 more tons of waste by the end of this year. In addition, he wants his product to be distributed throughout Africa to motivate more people to take care of the environment.

Changes like these are what make the difference and let us know that we can all add our bit to make this world a better place.