Bags of hope

By Dagmar Hoogland

Plastic People, that’s what we are. Scary but true as you look at the following numbers.

It’s estimated that Americans go through about a hundred billion plastic bags a year. In the UK, people use an estimated ten billion plastic bags – one hundred and sixty seven per person per year, and India consumes five million tons of plastics a year. The estimated time it takes to decompose a plastic bag is from twenty to one thousand years! Compare that with the three to four weeks in which a banana peel has disappeared, and you get the idea. Plastic waste is one of the biggest problems on our planet.

In Delhi, two people were fed up with the enormous amount of waste on the streets and they decided to turn things around. This Indian couple started a non-profit company called Conserve India. Using waste plastics as a resource, they are creating durable products like bags, shoes and belts.

The next important part is that all of this is done by so called rag pickers. People from one of the poorest groups in India are given jobs, education and are earning money. By doing so, they become more powerful and more independent individuals in their society. At VivaCity we think this is a remarkable example of a city movement. Not only are the people finding a way out of a very difficult life but at the same time, they become environmental heroes by upcycling plastic waste into useful products.

The method of their production is pretty remarkable too. As most of the women who are categorizing the bags on shade, are illiterate, they don’t know the names of colours. They therefore sort out the bags with the help of pictures of famous Bollywood movie stars wearing different colour dresses. Bollywood and a brave Indian couple prove their power, now let’s follow suit!

Check out the story of Conserve India on you tube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByRBJuCHZSc&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLyPYZRLJFw

why vivacity

This is the century of the city.

Over half the world’s population now live in cities. This is projected to rise to three-quarters of all people in 2050. With population increases, this means 6.75 billion of us will be city dwellers, an increase of 3.75 billion from today. As the future success or failure of mankind lies in cities, new ways of using them are needed.

The city represents an incredible paradox. We have never been closer together physically, but we have never been further away from each other emotionally. At vivacity we celebrate city movements around the world that change and re-define the way we interact with and use cities. Whilst cities cannot cope with the numbers now and the resultant strain on the world’s natural resources and eco-systems are already painfully evident, we believe that human spirit and endeavor will overcome, as it has done before.

vivacity promotes city movements that are connecting people & creating new types of communities. They are typically low impact, highly sociable, enabled by technology, using public and private spaces in new ways and empowering people to act locally.

vivacity promotes new ways of feeling alive, new ways of being invigorated, and new things to be a part of. We call it grassroots stuff in the city. We hope you get involved and share your experiences with us.

who we are

Andy Marks vivacity founder and editor

Social entrepreneur, lecturer, writer and curator, Andy Marks is an agent of positive social change practicing at the intersection or fault-line of business, society and culture. Andy is the founder of research and consultancy network Salad Worldwide, an advisor to some of the world’s leading companies on Corporate Responsibility and an advisor to a number of non-profit organizations. Andy is an expert on grass roots city movements, and a founding partner of an upcycling enterprise launching in 2010.

Julian Broadhead contributor

With a background in advertising, branding and corporate responsibility, Julian works with blue-chip companies from a wide range of industries and sectors, advising on strategy and new ways of connecting with people. He is currently developing a number of new opportunities in the environmental sector, with a particular emphasis on making environmental action more accessible.

Shane Solanki – contributor/distributor/carburettor/carbon-ara

Artist, writer, performer, producer and director, Shane’s first short film was commissioned by the BBC and directed by Peter Cattaneo. His first record was produced by Mercury Prize Winner Talvin Singh. He worked for years to forge the unique identity of independent record label Ninja Tune. We at Vivacity like to think of him as a grass roots detective, covertly operating under the pseudonym of the Last Mango in Paris; imagine him skulking around the world in a beige macintosh, recording and documenting our shift into a society where social responsibility and public creativity are norms.

contribute

become a vivacity scout

As more and more of us live in urban areas, individuals and communities can feel overwhelmed and isolated by the sheer intense-city of it all.

However we at vivacity believe that human spirit and endeavor will overcome as it has done so many times before. That is why we are celebrating movements around the world that are changing and re-defining the way we interact with the city. We would like to hear from you about grassroots movements or activities that bring people together face to face and use cities in new ways. The more original and imaginative the better.

Please email us describing a movement you would like to see on vivacity using a maximum of 300 words. info@vivacity.me