To spread the message of sustainability and make a positive impact on local communities, the advertising banners collected from across South Africa, were given a second life – the heavy-duty, PVC Flex material was upcycled to produce school bags that were donated to students of Emfundisweni Primary School in Alexandra.
A total of 517 square meters of PVC Flex material was collected and sent to Johannesburg, where Emirates commissioned Soweto-based entrepreneur Raymond Phiri of Motion Bags to design and create the bags.
Phiri and his talented team, with support from Just Bags – another local enterprise, helped bring the vision to life, creating 200 school bags and 125 shopping bags.
“The movement towards sustainable living is now more important than ever, and we need to take an active role to reduce our carbon footprint and make an impact where we can,” said Fouad Caunhye, Regional Manager of Emirates Southern Africa.
“This project not only gave us that opportunity, but also enabled us to engage with our community in a meaningful way. Partnering with local entrepreneur Raymond Phiri to create items that will bring joy to children, will only strengthen the close bonds Emirates already has with South Africa and its people.”
“This project is very close to my heart because I know what it’s like not to have a bag for school when the other children do,” said Phiri, owner of Motion Bags. “These bags are incredibly strong, water-resistant and will endure. Grade 1 learners that receive these bags will be able to use them until grade 7.”
“To see the happy faces of our students when they received their new bags, was such a delight,” said Thembakazi Giyama, Principal of Emfundisweni Primary School in Alexandra. “I’d like to thank Emirates for putting this fantastic initiative together. It is all the more special knowing that the spirit and sentiment behind these bags is the sustainable future of our children.”
Emirates continues to be an environmentally responsible airline. “Over the years, we have introduced multiple sustainable best practices which include our sustainable blankets produced from 100% recycled bottles and a young, fuel efficient fleet of aircraft,” said Caunhye.
In 2017 Emirates introduced sustainable blankets produced from 100% recycled plastic bottles. Using patented ecoTHREAD™ technology, each blanket is made from 28 recycled plastic bottles. It is estimated that by the end of 2019, Emirates’ ecoTHREAD™ blankets would have rescued 88 million plastic bottles from landfills.
Image (Happy faces. Learners from Emfundisweni Primary School in Alexandra, with school bags that were donated by Emirates).
