Social initiative launches campaign to convert cartons into bins, furniture
Through her venture Wasted Solutions, social entrepreneur Ann Anra has launched a campaign called Take Me Back that transforms used beverage cartons into functional products and donate to the community. “Beverage carton is primarily paper-based and can be recycled into useful items. But nobody in Chennai does recycling of cartons and it ends in landfills. We wanted to avoid that and through this campaign, we aim to create a positive impact by recycling cartons and inspire every Chennaiite to do so. All used cartons will be recycled and made into bins, furniture, roofing sheets, etc, that will be donated to communities in need around us,” Ann tells
The team has placed 20 bins across the city supermarkets (from Anna Nagar to OMR) where people can deposit their used beverage cartons. “One should follow three steps while dropping it off at our pick-up points. After you fully empty the contents, rinse and flatten the cartons. Push the straw back in the empty pack or re-attach the cap before disposing at your local super-market. Through this, we are also raising awareness on the importance of segregating and recycling used beverage cartons.”
The women at Perumbakkam Housing Board, supported by Arpanam Trust, play a vital role in the Take Me Back campaign. All cartons are collected and sorted by these women, providing for them an employment opportunity. “People will be having a lot of doubts on this and they can get in touch with us through social media or our website to know more about the campaign. We have also collaborated with Tetra Pak India for this venture,” says Ann.