Ker & Downey Africa has joined forces with CleanHub, an innovative company working with local communities in developing countries to free the planet and its oceans from plastic pollution.
The partnership will form part of the Ker & Downey Africa's Legacy Partner portfolio – a selection of vetted projects and organisations that contribute to empowering local communities, protecting wildlife, and creating a sustainable future for Africa and the world.
It is estimated that over 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced each year. Certain regions in South East Asia and the Pacific do not have the infrastructure in place to deal with these unprecedented levels of plastic – most of which is non-recyclable. In these areas, waste management systems are either inadequate or don't exist at all, and local communities don't have the tools or financial support to deal with it sustainably.
As a result, a staggering 11 million tonnes of plastic finds its way into the oceans each year, 80% of which is non-recyclable. Once in the water 90% of this non-recyclable waste sinks to the depths of the ocean where it can never be recovered.
CleanHub incentivizes local communities in high-impact areas to set up non-recyclable plastic collection businesses and utilize their digital platform to hand over the collected plastic to certified treatment and recovery partners before it reaches the ocean.
Joel Tasche, founder of CleanHub, says: “We're trying to build an economy where plastic is too valuable to waste.
“What that means is we are trying to give all plastic enough value that it is collected and subsequently treated correctly. That's the only way we can really see the world getting a grip on plastic pollution because, in the end, you won't throw away something valuable, right?”
For each trip booked with Ker & Downey Africa, guests can choose to donate $100 or more to CleanHub. This donation will see 100 pounds (45.3kgs) of plastic collected, sorted, and safely disposed of by CleanHub's global partners.
CEO of Ker & Downey Africa, Lee Kelsall said: “We have partnered with CleanHub to give our clients the opportunity to support large-scale plastic clean-up initiatives in high-impact regions like those in South East Asia and support CleanHub's goal of expanding their network of collection partners to Africa and other developing regions. We hope that this partnership will not only promote sustainable travel and empower local communities, but also help decrease our clients' carbon footprint when traveling to Africa.”
The partnership with CleanHub is one way the travel company is giving back to create a sustainable future for Africa and the world. The company hopes to continue expanding its Legacy Partner portfolio to provide its clients with even more solutions to give back when they travel to Africa.
