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2024/7/10

CIRCULAR ECONOMY DESIGN INSPIRATION FROM RECYCLED PLASTIC

East African Organization FlipFlopi continues to gain global recognition, promote education, and mitigate plastic pollution

“We have recovered 290,000kgs of plastics in two years - that’s an average of 12 tons per month that would have otherwise been burnt or ended up in the ocean.” - Dipesh Pabari, Co-Founder The FlipFlopi Project

WATERTODAY reconnected with Dipesh Pabari for an update on The FlipFlopi Project

By Suzanne Forcese

WT: Dipesh, recently the FlipFlopi Team presented at the 15th International Marine Design Conference, please tell us about this.

Pabari: The 15th International Marine Design Conference took place in Amsterdam and our team, including partners at Newcastle University and University of Northumbria, presented our peer reviewed paper on the context within which FlipFlopi is centered, our links to circular economy design principles, and the specific design challenges from working with recycled plastic as a boatbuilding material to this academic and design audience.

WT: The FlipFlopi mission is to end single use plastic, what can you tell us about the research paper?

Pabari: The FlipFlopi Project in Kenya partnered with Newcastle University, School of Engineering in the UK.

From The Abstract, lead author, Simon Benson summarizes our work --

Flipflopi is an East African organization with a mission to end single use plastic, driving this agenda using circular economy principles applied to the design and build of fully recycled plastic sailing dhows from their boatyard in Lamu, Kenya. Flipflopi has achieved measurable global impact by showcasing the world’s first ocean going recycled sailing boat, Ndogo, a 9 metre long, lateen rigged dhow which has sailed the East African coastline and across Lake Victoria. Flipflopi is now aiming to build a much larger ocean-going dhow, named Kubwa, which presents further technical challenges from a marine design perspective. To meet these challenges. FlipFlopi are utilizing a combination of generational heritage boatbuilding expertise in Lamu; specific design experience from building and sailing Ndogo; technological progress driven by other recycled plastic projects; and more formalized naval architecture and engineering design approaches. This paper introduces the context within which Flipflopi is centered, the links to circular economy design principles and the specific design challenges from working with recycled plastic as a boatbuilding material.

WT: The paper discusses plastic waste and pollution

Pabari: The focus of this paper is Amu Island, which is part of the Lamu Archipelago on the Kenyan coast with a population of around 30,000. The community generates about 14 Tonnes of waste daily, of which about 2.5 Tonnes is plastic waste.

The quantity of washed-up ocean plastic is not quantified, but by illustration a single community beach clean-up on a 10-km stretch of beach typically collects 35 to 40 Tonnes of plastic waste. To exacerbate the problem, there is only one waste disposal site on Amu Island. This area has no separation facilities and waste is left to pile up, blow across the island into the ocean and in many instances is burnt openly.

WT: When we last spoke in 2023, WT learned a great deal about the community involvement in building the dhow out of recycled ocean plastic. What other recycling projects are happening?

Pabari: We have been fortunate to have the continued support of the The Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) program which has been established by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and implemented in partnership with UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The program aims to address the environmental and health impacts of the manufacturing sector in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and some of the most pressing challenges associated with plastic pollution. 

We continue to design, develop, research, and expand the range of upcycled plastic products we are making. The possibilities are endless, and we are continuously inspired by traditional artisanal designs.

Lamu is well-known for its beautiful Swahili furniture and intricate doors, yet this incredible skill is in danger of dying out. At our training center, we are now training young craftsmen and women to master age-old skills in carpentry and boatbuilding but using plastic lumber as their material: we have trained some of Lamu’s first female carpenters and boat builders at the centre.

We are extremely fortunate to have our co-founder, Ali Skanda, who is a master carpenter and boat-builder, as a mentor and teacher, working alongside our Head of Design, Katharina Elleke and our ever-growing team of male and female carpenters and boat builders!

WT: Community outreach and education were high on your list of priorities last time we spoke. Any new endeavors on the go?

Pabari: This month World Ocean Day saw the release of the Ocean Health Course from the Seabin Foundation. In our recent partnership we provided valuable content for their new online education program which can be accessed free here. This comprehensive course is designed to educate and inspire young people (16+) and adults about the importance of protecting our oceans and the impact of marine pollution and we highly recommend it.

WT: What’s next?

Pabari: Through our SMEP Program, we have recovered 290,000kgs (about 639339.8 lbs.) of plastics in two years -- that is an average of 12 tons per month that would have otherwise been burnt or ended up in the ocean.

As part of our sustainability model, we have secured a partnership with Repurpose who will now cover the cost of purchasing waste plastics from the community as part of their Verified Plastic Recovery program while the SMEP Program continues to support all other areas and enable us to accelerate the business model.

In the FlipFlopi approach waste has become a precious resource that is collected, processed, and remade into a valuable product that retains heritage whilst embedding innovative innovative technologies. While this process can be used for replacing timber, the iconic design of a traditional sailing dhow is a powerful tool that impacts on community, enterprise, and engagement for environmental sustainability.

Looking to the future, FlipFlopi has plans to build a larger sailing dhow, which is hoped will circumnavigate the world taking the message of plastic pollution and local circular economy to coastal communities everywhere.

Related WT Article: A Plastic Revolution Sets Sail

Research Paper









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