Ingenious ways for Nigerians to save the environment and solve unemployment through arts and crafts

With the global call to reduce carbon emissions to solve climate change problems, NCHETACHI CHUKWUAJAH writes about how individuals and organizations preserve the environment by turning waste into beautiful works of art, while creating sustainable jobs for others.

The duo of Ramota and Abiodun Oladejo had, out of passion and desire to acquire a trade, gone to learn sewing in 2012 and 2016, respectively. They registered in places where clothes were made in bulk every day.

Worried about the amount of textile waste generated daily by their individual workplaces, they began to think about how to make this waste useful.

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“At the end of each day, we would fill two bags full of trash and throw it in the landfill. But I thought to myself, what if there is a way for us to turn this waste into something valuable because I don't like waste,” said Abiodun, a mathematics student at the National Open University of Nigeria. , Ibadan Study Centre.< /p>

This continued until 2019 when they started to pursue environmental sustainability, recycling and recycling waste. Then came Dr Abigail Badejo, a senior lecturer at Queensland University of Technology, Australia. The trio founded the Green Fashion Factory where textile and plastic waste is used to create beautiful products.

Waste, waste and more waste

Oladejos' concerns are not exaggerated, given the volume of waste generated in Nigeria and around the world. A 2022 report from the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy's Environmental Performance Index, which measures the number of plastics a country discharges into the ocean in a given year, shows that Nigeria is among the 30 worst countries for waste management, with a score of 12.7 out of 100.

The World Bank estimates that every day every Nigerian generates 0.51 kilograms (kg) of waste. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) reports that Nigeria generates 32 million tons of waste annually, including 2.5 million tons of plastic. With an annual population growth rate of 2.4%, Nigeria's total waste is expected to reach 107 million tonnes by 2050.

The World Bank also said that municipal solid waste worldwide stands at 2.01 billion tons and is projected to increase by 70% to 3.40 billion by 2050. The Bank noted that 33 % of this waste is not managed in an environmentally friendly way. . In 2016 alone, the world generated 242 million tonnes of plastic waste (2.4 trillion plastic bottles), equivalent to the weight of 3.4 million adult blue whales.

There are implications

Not only does this waste pollute the environment, but it also contributes enormously to climate change. When solid waste is dumped in landfills, it emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas (GHG), as it decomposes. Methane is responsible for more than 25% of current global warming. According to the United Nations Environment Program, methane, due to its structure, retains more heat in the atmosphere per molecule than carbon dioxide, making it 80 times more harmful than CO2 for 20 years after his release. Carbon dioxide is also produced naturally when something rots.

Increasing releases of GHGs such as methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide into the atmosphere through human activities such as indiscriminate waste disposal are slowly warming the Earth's surface , leading to a change in its climatic conditions.

The concentration of major GHGs has increased and is more abundant in the atmosphere than in pre-industrial years. Nigeria, with 492.44 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e), accounts for 1.01% of global GHG emissions in 2014.

This also puts Nigeria on the list of one of the 10 most climate-vulnerable countries. Already, the country is experiencing the effects of climate change, including flooding, sea level and temperature rise, drought, desertification and food insecurity.

But there are efforts

By reusing textile and plastic waste, the Oladejos are doing their part to reduce environmental pollution. "Our products are waste wow! We turn fabric waste into artwork, shoes, bags, etc. Our target audience are art galleries, art collectors, middle and high income people , schools, etc,” said Ramota, who studies statistics at the University of Ibadan.

“At our exhibitions, people are always surprised at the kind of possibilities we can offer with fabric waste. People always like our products,” Abiodun added.

So far, the factory, which is an offshoot of Grace and Great Social Enterprise, a non-governmental organization...