Living in Koh Rong Sanloem since the beginning of july, we spent a month and a half working on the Precious Plastic workshop.
It was a first time experience for everybody : foundations, concrete slab, wooden pillars, carpentry, roof, walls, windows, canopy... We cutted, measured, sawed, painted a lot of wood, we took the level with what we had on hand and we are quite happy of the result ! Everyday we were only working on it, except when the thunderstorms were stopping us in our progress.
As much as possible we used leftovers materials from restaurants and guesthouses of the island : wood, metal, bricks... and didn't buy so much new materials !
We had to build the workshop before end of august because we all take 3 weeks of holiday to recharge a bit on our own side, come back at the middle of september and start to build the machines with maximum motivation ! And a workshop ready to work in !
August is for us the middle of Trash is Nice project in Cambodia. After five months in Chiro, more than one month to build our Precious Plastic workshop, we are ready to start the next step of our project. Everyday spent here in Cambodia has been rewarding by working with khmers, living at the same rhythm, learning their language, try to understand their way to be, to act, to react to situations. Our last experience has been important and helps us to handle better the challenges we face here.
Here is a video to give you an idea about what's happening with plastic wastes in Sihanoukville (closest city from Koh Rong Samloem)
In october, Trash is Nice team gets bigger ! Edgar join the adventure during three months, he knows the Precious Plastic machines, already built some in Paris. He's gonna be really helpful ! We can't wait to meet him !
We also have been contacted by Joel, "el mochilero solidario", travelling in Asia to meet NGOs acting in a small scale, and buying some material to support them.
Joel made a donation for our association : a cut off saw we needed to build the machines. We want to say a big thanks to him !
Have a nice summer !
See you soon !
For those who are interested here is an article which shows the plastic situation in the world :
Henderson island is located on the South Pacific gyre and have the world strongest density of trash. Listed as a World Heritage Site 30 years ago for its preservation and its exceptional biodiversity, Hendersen is today totally drowned under plastic wastes. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2017/05/henderson-island-pitcairn-trash-plastic-pollution/