Social entrepreneur turns trash into treasure

ONE of the biggest misconceptions regarding recycling is that it is an informal business and a waste of time. According to the latest GreenCape Market Intelligence Report, South Africa’s current waste economy is estimated to be worth R15 billion and provides 29,833 people with employment. The report also suggests that R17 billion worth of resources could be unlocked if 100 per cent of the identified 13 waste streams could be recycled.

Local social entrepreneur, Nozipho Zulu agrees and says people need to educated on recycling as many do not realize they are throwing away valuable material.

Zulu is the owner of ZuluGal Retro, a company which is economically empowering intellectually disabled people, living and working in townships in and around Durban. Not only has she built her business by economically empowering these young people, she is also an avid eco-warrior and all her products are made from recycled materials.

“I work with close to 20 people. We started in 2016 and are now planning to expand the project. Initially it was a pilot project, but now we have seen that it works. We use arts and crafts to bring about social change and to solve unemployment and bring those who are socio-economically marginalized, into becoming active players within the economy. Recycle materials are resources people can easily find and most often do not cost a lot. It is also a resource that gives back to the environment,” she said.

According to Cape Mental Health Spokesperson Gerrie Van Eeden, an estimated 7.5% of the population lives with some form of disability and the group most often excluded from various aspects of life because there is a perception that they are unable to contribute or play a meaningful role due to their disability. It is this group who need the most support from the business sector.

Despite the challenges that Zulu has faced in her business, she credits the support she received from RedBull Amaphiko Academy. Zulu was handpicked by the Red Bull Amaphiko Academy among only 20 of the top social entrepreneurs in the country, to attend their in-house training and benefit from a one-on-one mentorship programme. “The Academy has been very supportive, it was a source of inspiration through its mentorship and practical skills and tools that they offered. To receive the support beyond the academy, providing me with a mentor has helped me develop my networking skills,” said Zulu.

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In recognition of her extraordinary contribution to sustainability and care of the environment in the arts and fashion industry, she has been selected among five finalists for the Eco-Logic Awards 2018 in the category Recycling and Waste Management. She was also one of only 40 South Africans to participate in the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders. She travelled to the US to study at the University of Texas, Austin and attended a three day presidential summit hosted by former US President Barack Obama where she interacted with leaders in business, government and the non-profit sector.

Zulu has trained her team in weaving and they now work from their homes around the province, producing creative bags, pencil cases and protective pouches for sunglasses out of industrial laminated plastic waste, such as chip and chocolate packets. They start by gathering laminated upcycled packaging and she and her team cut into rectangular shapes with specific dimensions, which are folded and woven into strips and then stitched together into rows to form the outer shell of the items they produce to sell She is a proponent of the shift towards a collective consciousness within the fashion industry, which is driven by the need to recycle and up-cycle in order to increase the length of fashion cycle.

“The idea is that this will decrease the impact the industry has on the environment and reduce the waste created by seasonal trends. The bags we produced make use of upcycled-recycled material. The products are well made and the wrappers used to create the accessories are all familiar South African brands, which have a warm sense of nostalgia about them without compromising their ability to hold their own within the world of fashion,” concluded Zulu.

You can contact Nozipho Zulu on FaceBook or Twitter at ZuluGal Retro.

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