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WASTED laboratory by Cities in collaboration with Overtreders W and Bureau SLA, Amsterdam

Peak plastic

By Alex Jordan 24 : 08 : 2015 Wasted : Wasted Lab : Amsterdam

Amsterdam – Cities, a community-based urban initiative, has launched Wasted, a neighbourhood laboratory for plastic waste upcycling.

Wasted collects plastic waste from the local community and reprocesses it as a building material
The project operates in collaboration with design studio Overtreders W and architectural studio Bureau SLA

‘In a Wasted neighbourhood, plastic is never wasted. You use it. You re-use it. It’s a valued resource, a community asset.’ Taking plastic off the streets and out of landfill sites, the Wasted laboratory’s reprocessing machines keep plastic in the local community, repurposing waste as building blocks used in public structures including benches and stages.

Amsterdammers are encouraged to donate their waste in exchange for Wasted loyalty coins, a pseudo currency earning them discounts and experiences at more than 20 local stores and services.

Rewards start from as little as one coin, equivalent to one bag of plastic, while eight will earn diligent donors a coffee roasting and tasting workshop at micro roaster Dolce Alchemia, and 10 is enough for a three-course meal at seafood restaurant Stork.

The Big Picture: It is time to stop seeing waste as a problem. Our macrotrend Whole-system Thinking looks at brands exploring the opportunities in waste.