Summary

Feeding starving children through modular shoes made from recycled plastics and algal bloom

Background and Objective

Over 381 million tonnes of plastic wastes was generated in 2015 alone! In a metropolitan like Lagos, over 1200 tonnes of plastic waste is generated on a daily basis. The average American generates an average of 0.5 kg of plastic wastes daily; that is equivalent of a standard shoe! I grew up in a third world country that prioritized rapid industrialization above environmental sustainability with the end result of highly unacceptable levels of toxic industrial wastes and effluent emissions. I began to feel the hardship they had experienced for many years. Then, it looked like I could do nothing significant about this; I however learnt over time that it was well within my capacity to help the situation in the least. I also realized that this menace spans from my community in Lagos to countries like South Africa, India, Brazil and even to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, thus, not only a Nigerian problem but a global one.

Actions and Implementation

• Manufacturing • Product designing • Marketing • Quality assurance • CSR • Research and Development • Distribution • Customer Relationship Management • Procurement

Outcomes and Impacts

5% of the profit on every shoe sold is dedicated to feeding children in underserved communities.

Sustainability and Scalability

We have design rights on our invention and currently have a pending patent. We would open up opportunities for franchises by the coming year (2020).

Gender and Social Inclusivity

Innovative Initiative

In a year, we would have contributed $4,464,000 of our profits to the cause of feeding over 1,100,000 starving children, and converted over 160,000 tonnes of plastics to wearable shoes!

Resources devoted to delivery

Our budget is $5,000,000. We have pending investment from the UK Department for International Trade

Conclusion

Current limits • Limited manufacturing capacity – we now have manufacturing partners who can now mass-produce 50,000 shoes/day • Global market penetration – we are partnering with a global marketing agency Strategic issue • International Trade Barriers – we are selling franchises and have a pending patent and design rights