Maurice SkinnerKAO, a homecare consumer products company, is working with the local community and companies in Kamakura. They are proposing a new system for a recycling-oriented society. Their project, “RecyCreation,” aims to spearhead the way for a better future by collecting used packs and bottles which were once filled with detergents or shampoo.
The term “recyCreation” consists of the combination of two words, recycle and creation. Normal recycling is geared toward using the recycled products for their original intended purposes. However, recyCreation aims to use these items to create something new and interesting.
Kamakura has utilized this system since 2016. Collected packs and bottles are turned into “okaeri blocks”. These blocks are then used locally. One example of the blocks’ utilization after recycling can be found in the Enoshima station break room where they have been installed and made into seating.
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With the release with the KAO Environmental Statement in 2009, the company has worked with locals and companies throughout Japan in order to reduce the environmental impact in all business activities. Furthermore, KAO is also working to achieve social sustainability by utilizing the 4Rs, which stand for reduce, replace, reuse and recycle.
Since 2015, their RecyCreation project has enabled research into the resource circulation of packaging containers as well as adding value to partner companies and local communities. Collection boxes for packs and bottles have been installed in 34 locations around Kamakura, including 25 elementary and junior high schools, six parks, 3 locations that are similar and include Enoden Kamakura Station.
KAO creates high quality products and brands, which help enrich the lives of its global consumers. Since 2016, the company has had a hand several community-based activities to in order to collect packets and bottles. With the collaboration of partner companies, these recyclables are then turned into polymers in order to promote a cleaner environment and a sustainable future.
Check out some of the scenes at Kamakura here (in Japanese)!
