Another milestone in our fight against waste

The first Litter Free Auroville (LFA) campaign in 2010 was a landmark occasion. The event brought about the establishment of the Upcycling Studio and the founding of WasteLess. Since that first LFA campaign eight years ago, the issue of waste has gained increasing traction in the community as the EcoService, Upcycling Studio and WasteLess have worked together to raise consciousness on the issue of waste.

More than a thousand people at the Trashion Show

This year’s Trashion Show, the 3rd in this event’s exciting history, was as popular as ever with the Kalabhumi amphitheater filled well beyond its seating capacity. More than a thousand people gathered to witness first-hand the 55 original and beautiful creations made out of all types of waste, including paper, plastic and cloth. Despite facing last minute technical issues with power backup, in good old Auroville-style the team managed to get the event back on track and the show did go on. SVARAM’s wonderful musicians played live music, while Jesse’s dulcet tones kept the audience informed about both the creations being paraded on stage and the educational message behind the show.

Save the Sea

The theme for this year’s Trashion Show was ‘Save the Sea’; the event sought to raise awareness of the dramatic effects that humans are having on Earth’s oceans. Plastic pollution in particular is proving to be an environmental disaster for marine life. It is estimated that by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the sea! Not only are animals getting injured and dying when they get entangled in larger pieces of plastic (such as abandoned fishing nets), but plastics are also breaking down into tiny pieces called microplastics that fish and other marine life mistake for food. Once ingested, the plastic works its way up the food chain, damaging not only the animals and the environment, but also directly harming us by making its way into our fish curries and sushi.

Many of the plastics found in the sea belong to the ‘single use’ category, short-sightedly designed to be used just once and then thrown away. Takeaway coffee/tea cups, plates, straws, food packaging and plastic bags that are described as ‘disposable’ all risk being carelessly discarded and ending up in the sea. While the concept of a single use item is flawed from the outset, the potential for such objects to end up in seas around the world represents one of humanity’s greatest failings.

As humans, we have the capacity and the responsibility to work to save our oceans and environment by stopping, or at the very least massively reducing, our dependence on single use plastics. Using reusable bags instead of plastic carry bags, refilling water bottles to avoid bottled water and repairing, reusing and recycling wherever possible are all endeavours that we can achieve in our daily lives. In this spirit, over 50 Auroville designers unleashed their creativity and the glamorous designs on display at the Trashion Show included single use and other types of plastics.

The RE-CENTRE building: a space for interdisciplinary collaboration

Another great leap of progress in the field of waste management took place a few days after the Trashion Show. As part of Auroville’s 50th celebration the EcoService, Upcycling Studio and WasteLess were honoured to be able to perform the Bhoomi Puja for Phase 1 of the RE-CENTRE building that will be constructed in the Service Area. On the 26th of February, Dr. Karan Singh, Chairman of the Governing Board, laid the foundation stone for the building in the presence of Dr. Anirban Ganguly, Dr. Prema Nandakumar, Dr. Nirima Oza, Secretary of Auroville Foundation, Mohan Chunkath, Under Secretary Srinivasmurty and friends and supporters in Auroville.

Funded by the 50th Anniversary Special Grant from the Ministry of Human Resource Development, the RE-CENTRE will become a living laboratory that brings waste to the forefront of our conscious endeavours. The three organisations that will be based in the building have already done a fantastic job in raising the profile of waste in and around Auroville. The EcoService has successfully brought recycling rates in the community up from an estimated 30% in 2010 to an impressive 70% today. Upcycling Studio works exclusively with waste to create inspired and beautiful designs that increase the value of what we discard. This amazing Auroville creativity has been on display at numerous exhibitions and they are part of a global project supported by the European Commission to educate youth in upcycling. WasteLess has been working on developing educational materials for schools to engage the next generation with innovative and exciting new ways to manage waste in Auroville, across India, and internationally.

When completed the RE-CENTRE building will provide a space for interdisciplinary collaboration that will bring the issue of waste management under one roof. All aspects of waste will be integrated so that continuous learning and growth can take place. This is a 100% Auroville-led project.

The building has been designed, and will be constructed and run, by Aurovilians. The construction will also use sustainable technologies pioneered by the Humanscapes project in Auroville so a minimum of concrete and steel will be used. The site will also incorporate a wastewater treatment plant, rain water harvesting and infrastructure for the generation of solar energy.

The long incubation time

The laying of the foundation stone on February 26th is a symbol of the progress that Auroville has made, and continues to make, in relation to sustainable waste management. Seven years ago, the idea of establishing a space for collaboration between the different organisations dealing with waste in Auroville was born and this year construction of this long-awaited building will begin. The honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech for Auroville’s Golden Jubilee spoke about the ‘positive vibrations’ the world has received from various experiments in Auroville, and this includes waste management.

The RE-CENTRE represents a momentous opportunity for Auroville to experiment, innovate and share solutions for one of humanity’s most dirty problems - garbage! All the participants are excited for this next phase to begin and are grateful to Auroville for providing the opportunity for this dream to take shape.