INTRODUCTION
Plastic waste pollution is a serious challenge globally, having a detrimental effect on the environment, society and health. Ghana produces 1.1 million tonnes of plastic waste annually, with only 5% currently recycled. Many municipalities lack the means to sufficiently recycle plastic waste, and as a result, plastic waste litters communities as locals are forced to dispose of waste where they can, with plastics ending up in the streets, the countryside and most alarmingly, waterways.
The aim of the project is to convert the waste plastic into construction materials (such as bricks) to build washroom facilities for schools. The lack of a washroom in the school affects students and teachers’ attendance, especially female students, due to a lack of sanitary hygiene facilities. This culminates in the low enrollment of female students and overall poor performance of students.
Background
The Humanitarian Engineering Research Group collaborates with Engineering without Borders NL , a non-profit organisation with the aim of promoting, teaching and implementing sustainable technical solutions in developing countries which can be successfully adopted by local companies.
EWB-NL is partnering with Temporary Works Design, The Great Plastic Bake Off and Trash Smart to develop a sustainable business model, software for value chain optimization, methods and equipment to enhance construction efficiency, recycling technology for brick production, architectural and structural design for a pilot construction project.
PROJECT MEMBERS
STUDENTS PARTICIPATION
The project is part of the BSc thesis in Civil Engineering of Matilde Patrignani, of the MSc thesis in Industrial Design Engineering of Geert Talsma and of the MSc thesis in Industrial Design Engineering of Tirsa van der Ouw, who successfully graduated on 15th July 2025. You can download her thesis work here
international RECOGNITION & Prize
Our UT Humanitarian Engineering students (Teodora Citia, Tirsa van der Ouw and Geert Talsma) won first place during the UNESCO World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development (WED) with the project 'ManufacturingBox', a container-based factory to turn plastic waste into bricks.
INFORMATION
For more information: Dr. Alberto Martinetti (a.martinetti@utwente.nl) or visit Engineers without Borders NL