craft:

Betsy from craftivism wrote in asking for help seeking ideas on ways to recycle trash in a small Guatemalan village – here is the letter – if you can help either leave a comment here or email her betsy[AT]craftivism[.]com

One of the biggest problems regarding health in Guatemala (and other countries) is related to trash. In the villages, to get rid of trash, they burn it, right in the middle of the village, letting dangerous toxic fumes blow right down the main street, not 10 yards from houses, kids, cows.

I’m working on putting together a grant proposal with some ideas of how the villagers could reuse their trash to create something useful. Yes, they could also make stuff and resell it, but unless it can be resold in country, it’s perpetuating Guatemala being dependent on other countries. The money from the grant would go towards making/teaching/testing creations in order to see if the villagers can easily make them …

Given the DIY/craft community’s enthusiasm for reusing materials, what could we come up with that would make life easier in developing countries? From solar power to LED lights to making yarn from plastic bags to reusing plastic bottle … The possibilities are endless! The biggest problem is finding a way to reuse plastic so it can be saved from the town dump. Yes, recycling would be awesome, but not as practical in the middle of nowhere. Water is also an issue as some people have to carry it from a stream in buckets… which I can tell you, are heavy!

So, I’m asking you, lovely craft peeps, to either pass on any links you might have of creative reuse ideas or to pass on the word that I’m looking for them.

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