Project Overview
The ReUseful Project is an innovative initiative funded by local ward funding from Waltham Forest's William Morris Ward councillors, with a focus on teaching local children from the area about the importance of reusing and recycling materials, particularly plastics.
The project aims to collect used PLA and HDPE plastics from the community and upcycle them into new objects such as combs, badges, and coasters.
Through this process, the project hopes to demonstrate that materials that are typically thrown away can be repurposed to create something useful and new. The project's primary focus is to educate children from the Greenleaf Primary School about the importance of reducing waste and the benefits of upcycling. The program will provide children with hands-on experience with various tools and techniques, including 3D printing, laser cutting, and heat molding, to transform the collected plastics into new and exciting objects.
By participating in this project, the children will gain a better understanding of the environmental impact of waste, as well as valuable skills in design and creativity.In addition to the educational aspect, The ReUseful Project will also benefit the local community by reducing plastic waste in the area. The project's founders hope that by demonstrating the value of upcycling, they can encourage members of the community to rethink their own plastic consumption and recycling habits. The project aims to promote a circular economy by repurposing plastics and creating new, useful products while reducing the environmental impact of waste.
Our Contributions
The ReUseful Project involved the purchased a newplastic shredder and injection moulding machine to further recycle the plastics collected, the materials (ie bottle caps) were then palletize and melt down along with waste materials generated from the 3D printing process.
The melted plastics were then injection moulded back into useable items that will be given back to Greenleaf Primary School and local community groups such as combs, coasters and badges/broaches.
This initiative will not only provide valuable resources to the community but also demonstrate the importance trying to create a closed-loop system that reduces waste and promotes the reuse of materials, thereby contributing to a more sustainable future.
