A design workshop to generate innovation in the circular economy was held on Tuesday, 25 May at the Nairobi One Stop Centre. This was attended by youth representatives of the Mathare Environmental Conservation Group, representatives from IOM, UN Habitat and trainers from the International School of Kenya (ISK).

During the design workshop, aimed at creating innovative products from recycled plastic under the guidance of the ISK, the youth from Mathare carried out brainstorming activities followed by intense discussions on the ideas that were generated. This was followed by a mapping of the community needs, the markets and finally the selection/recommendation of the pilot project, which is the recycling of plastic waste to create educational materials in the form of alphabet and number blocks and shapes. This will be done by using specific recycling machines such as shredders, injection moulder and extruders, which were funded by IOM. 

From this workshop, it was suggested that the alphabets and numbers will be made in different sizes, colors and fonts. They will be used as learning instruments for pupils in the lower primary, in offices and businesses for calendar dates, price lists and labelling of public vehicles, as price tags of items sold in markets, as birthday cake decorations, labelling key holders, rooms in hotels and offices, and at ceremonies.