Osaki Town recruiting upcycling ideas for school furniture

In an effort to transform the way we handle waste as resources, Hisanaga Co. Ltd. and the Osaki Town SDGs Promotion Council have joined forces to create the “Meguru Kagu Project.” The initiative aims to recruit individuals, groups, and businesses to upcycle 114 children’s wooden chairs and 117 desks, previously destined for the landfill, from elementary schools. Mindful of transportation costs and environmental impact, the project will focus on a 100km radius surrounding Osaki Town.

The future looms with challenges, as local areas grapple with increasing burdens due to soaring material and production costs, alongside mounting pressure on the delivery industry. Enter the Meguru Kagu Project, which strives to find tangible solutions by building case studies of reuse and upcycling. This venture addresses the ever-growing need to not only introduce new products, but also collect and repurpose existing ones.

This project, born from a consultation with Hisanaga, questioned whether there were alternative uses for the elementary school desks and chairs discarded annually. Collaborating with Yamanaka Soy Sauce Co. Ltd., a pioneering upcycling company located in Higashi-Kushira Town, the project solicited ideas from a diverse array of fields.

In a world where perfectly usable furniture is often incinerated, the Meguru Kagu Project endeavors to provide valuable resources for creators, designers, and educators, seeking innovative ways to utilize resources while reducing waste.

As for application requirements, the project primarily targets applicants within a 100km radius of Osaki Town. Anyone fitting this description is encouraged to apply, irrespective of individual, group, age, or qualifications. Applicants should contemplate the intended use for the items and submit a concise description along with their application, which can be made here.