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Juntos, or “together” in Spanish, is a new UNICEF initiative. The initiative is about working together, a collaboration between two countries and between young and old, to help combat the pressing waste problem in Colombian neighbourhoods.
As a clear exponent of a circular economy, UNICEF is working with Italian 3D-printing company WASP to turn waste into construction material that’s suitable for printing a school. UNICEF will be encouraging young people in Colombian neighbourhoods to collect discarded material and to deposit it with UNICEF, to help teach them awareness.
One of the key issues facing schoolchildren in Colombia is the shortage in classrooms. Either there are none, or the ones they have are occupied beyond capacity, which makes learning difficult and unpleasant. UNICEF’s research shows that it will require another 15,000 classrooms to meet the needs of the children who have no place to study. The first step is to collect recycled waste from polluted areas in and around neighbourhoods to be used to print a large number of new classrooms in the next two years, with the aim of increasing production in the future. What makes this project so unique and important isn’t just helping tackle classroom shortages, but also raising awareness among young people in Colombia. They will learn that if you work hard and take care of what you have, there’s a lot you can achieve – such as in this case new and environmentally responsible education.
The result
The project may come across as a rubbish school at first, but when they see the result and learn how it’s made, people begin to realise that this may be the future, and start seeing the project in a new light. It’s not traditional construction material, but it is the future. We all know how desperately our planet needs us to change. UNICEF is hoping it will inspire others to be more engaged in sustainability and in waste management in a circular economy.
Photography > Lieke Alblas, Models > Jamie Verweij/Miguel Guzman/Jamyma Verhoeve, Styling > Luz Guzman
Photography > Lieke Alblas, Models > Jamie Verweij/Miguel Guzman/Jamyma Verhoeve, Styling > Luz Guzman
Future plan
According to the fund, a quarter of all children and young people in South America aren’t attending school, so this test project shows great promise for the region. The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the Colombian economy. Research has shown that they’ve been set back ten years economically. As a result, low-income neighbourhoods will struggle even more than they have in the past, and school will be even more difficult to access. That’s why a short-term execution of the project is key. The waste collection process is fairly quick, as is the printing of schools. It’s a start, a pilot, and we’ll see which country could be next.