Empowering through waste
Around the world, irresponsible human activities seem to be leading to absolute entropy, but thankfully, there are a few people who are doing their bit to save the environment. Two such individuals are Renu Rao and Abhinav Gangumalla, who run We Recycle, an organisation which not only upcycles waste into beautiful and functional products, but also empowers women from economically challenged areas by hiring them to craft waste papers, bottles, soda cans and tetrapacks into books, lamps and photo frames, among other things.
The four-year-old organisation had a few setbacks since its inception due to family issues of the founders, but is now back in the game. They were recently invited to set up a stall at the NY Now Trade Show, the biggest gift fair in the US.
Abhinav, a gold medallist in civil engineering and a graduate from IIT Bombay, talks about how he turned to the sustainability sector seven years ago. “I love travelling and even 60 km away from Hyderabad, I see people living sustainably. Despite being so educated, what’s the point if we’re not able to do anything for the environment? I then started making composters for people to compost kitchen waste,” says Abhinav, who has also designed and implemented a water harvesting plan for the ISB campus. “I had found a solution for biodegradable waste, but not for plastic and such things. That’s when I met Renu and we decided to start We Recycle,” he says and adds, “People think recycled goods cannot look good. We wanted to bust this misconception.”
The creative mind behind the products is Renu Rao, who has done her Masters in Fine Arts from the US. “My thesis topic was public art on environment. During the course of my research, I became more conscious of the environment. When Abhinav and I decided to start We Recycle, we consciously appointed economically challenged women. I come from a conservative family but am married to a man who always believed in empowerment of women, so he influenced me,” she says.
For Parveen Begum, one of the ladies who turns waste into beautiful products, this is a first job, and she’s been working here since We Recycle’s inception. “Our family doesn’t allow us to work at offices, so I found the perfect job since I can stay home and make things. We can also do this while watching TV or cooking, so it does not interfere with our domestic chores,” she says, adding, “It feels great to be able to contribute for my child’s education and other necessities at home. I feel respected.”
I come from a conservative family but am married to a man who always believed in empowerment of women. He influenced me — RENU RAO, FOUNDER