Village Beat Issue 14, June 2013 | Page 23

Africa Collects Textiles
Africa Collects Textiles

YOur OlD clOthes cAN helP sAVe the PlANet

The Village Market has partnered with Dove International, a Dutch-based non-governmental organisation, in a pioneer project to collect unused clothing, household textiles and shoes for‘ upcycling’ into reusable raw materials.

The project is called ACT!( Africa Collects Textiles) and its aim is to improve the lives of underprivileged groups. The aim is to retain all textiles and shoes in a sustainable closed loop cycle of raw materials. By donating old clothes, people can play a role in improving the environment, creating employment and funding charity projects.
The Village Market is the first shopping centre to roll out this campaign. ACT! has set up a collection point at The Village Market outside Nakumatt where shoppers can deposit their used textiles and footwear, clean and dry, in a plastic bag. ACT! then sorts and analyses the collected items using the latest technical and scientific methods to make sure they pass the optimal use test. In this way, international standards relating to ethical and legal regulations are taken into account.
Social responsibility
ACT! encourages everyone to donate for a better world. The organisation accepts used trousers, tops, skirts, bed sheets, curtains, T-shirts, shoes, sandals, belts, bags, etc. You can even bring items that are ripped or broken. For every garment and every shoe in the circulation loop, a donation to charity is made by ACT! or the collecting partners. Collected and processed items can be used in the following ways:

‘ ACT! encourages everyone to donate for a better world’

reweAr: Processed to wear again reuse: Processed into new products such as cleaning cloths
DOwNcYcliNg: Reduction or breakdown into source materials such as isolation and insulating materials
uPcYcliNg: Processed and returned to producers as new material
eNergY: Thermal utilisation.
The Village Market is proud to be associated with this initiative.
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