Every year MCKINGTORCH Africa does a few 10 feet tall bottles tree with 400 waste bottles and install them.
This last year, the Christmas tree got sponsored by Twelhum Industrial company limited, producers of Vema mineral water company as part of their commitment to reducing plastic waste in Ghana.
However, the company has introduced the new eco-Fendley plastic bottle and has partnered MCKINGTORCH Africa to produce 7 waste bottles Christmas trees with the largest one being a 20 tooter tree with a base of 7 feet and with 1300 plastic waste bottles.
This was named ‘The Verna Christmas Tree’.
The Verna Christmas trees were handwoven by over 50 volunteers each time with over 10 hours spent weaving, decorating and lighting the trees.
Excitingly, the Verna Christmas tree sponsored by Twelhum Industrial company Ltd has found its way into some amazing spaces this year as it is featuring for the first time at the Light Up Accra’ Christmas Lighting done by Jandel in partnership with selected banks and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly.
The fabrication of the trees itself has been done around a road show with sessions held at Academic City University, Aburi Girls Senior High School, Achimota School, Vim’s Dance Factory and another at Ada. The road show has allowed over 200 volunteers to participate in the sessions. The plastic waste bottles have been recovered from homes and offices over the year through a plastic waste recovery program that MCKINGTORCH Africa runs.
This project is a powerful advocacy tool as it influences the behaviour of people on responsible handling of plastic waste while making non-contaminated plastic waste available to recycling facilities and allowing women who pick waste to make decent cash on picking of plastic waste.
The project has been documented by the BBC and Joy News