One of the key environmental challenges is the accumulation of plastic waste in our oceans. There are a lot of people who are trying to solve this specific problem in their own ways. Some have built trash collecting robot boats, and other devices.
I came across this interesting solution that AB Inbev is implementing in Mexico. You can read about this solution and more information about the project here.
The company that owns the Corona brand of Beer found an interesting way to solve this problem in Mexico. The company runs a competition amongst fishermen. The competition is based on who is able to pick up the most amount of trash in a given time duration.
The winners get some prize money (not much – in the vicinity of a few hundred EUR’s). All participants get medals and some vouchers that can be exchanged for cleaning utensils made from recycled plastic.
The plastic thus collected is then recycled by a recycling partner. Together, the partnership has collected more than 5 million kilograms of plastic from the Pacific Ocean since December 2020.
I like this solution because
The solution can be scaled and sustained over time. The solution also addresses multiple problems in an elegant way:
- The plastic waste is removed from the ocean. So, good for the environment.
- The fishermen are getting paid for their labour and this serves as an additional source of income for them.
- The plastic thus recovered is recycled by a recycling partner who is doing good in their own way (employment opportunities to women, etc).
- The brand gets publicity and does its part “to be good by doing good”.
What next:
Every time I come across a creative solution, I try to think about other situations or problems which could also be solved by either adopting the solution as it is or by using it as a starting point to direct the brainstorming.
In this case, here is a problem that can benefit from a similar solution.
Paying homeless people (who want to get back on track) small chunks of cash to clean urban trash or clean up graffitis or build low cost housing or something similar. Involve a brand that wants to be good by doing good. The key is to pay in small chunks of money commensurate to the labour involved and to keep it going for long durations. This helps our homeless brothers and sisters maintain their dignity and get out of their horrible situations.
Can you think of any other problem that could benefit from a similar solution? If yes, please do share by commenting on this blog or wherever you are reading this. I would love to read it and maybe, just maybe our wish might come true.
