Reduce, Reuse, Recycle in our Everyday Lives: What can you do with a plastic bottle?
This workshop focuses on one very unique use of plastic bottles that can change the way we build things and help reduce waste. Similar to fishing string, the plastic string can be made out of a plastic bottle with a homemade handheld simple tool, which we will build in this workshop. (1 four hour workshop or a series over 2 days). Building a tool to extract the string from the plastic bottle does not take special skills. The tool itself does not need electricity. In this workshop we will focus on the following:
- Review of the basic 3 R’s – Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle and how this fits into the daily life of children, youth and their families
- Defining the plastic pollution problem that the entire globe suffers from and understanding its impact on children and youth around the world to better develop empathy which propels action on the part of the students
- A brief overview of ways to reuse plastic bottles (Ecobricks, watering systems, etc)
- What are the benefits of plastic bottle string and how can they be harnessed in a tool with easy recycling?
- Strong
- it contracts under heat and can tighten its grip, making a strong seal
- Waterproof by nature
- Does not deteriorate over time
- Can be used in connections where nails or screws fail, like bamboo
- Complicated multi beam connections can be done simply
- Very lightweight
- How to build the specific basic tool to make plastic string from a bottle – best practices and techniques reviewed and explored through the hands-on practice
- Experiment with different uses of the string, including heating it for extra strength