Operation Take Two members Keneisha Charles, Theresa Schwab, and Aaliyah Charles (left to right) pose outside the repurposed shipping container that houses their project.
Image Credit: Submitted by Justin Schneider
November 01, 2019 - 12:42 PM
What started as a small project by a group of Rutland students interested in taking on the problem of plastic pollution will be getting some national attention.
Operation Take Two, which began in November 2017 as a project by Rutland Senior Secondary's Interact Club, will be making their pitch for a larger impact on CBC's Dragons Den Nov. 7 at 9 p.m.
The group of student volunteers transform plastic waste normally sent to a landfill into practical items such as plant pots, 3D printer filament, and reusable grocery bags.
Operation Take Two will be in the Dragons Den next week.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Operation Take Two Instagram
The sale of the items generates a profit to ensure the project’s sustainability and creates the potential to both expand the project to new cities and invest in other community youth-led initiatives.
"Central Okanagan Public Schools empowers our learners to thrive in a rapidly changing world," Kevin Kaardal, Superintendent of Schools, said in a press release earlier this year.
"We are very proud of these young innovators because they saw a global problem and collaborated with their community to create a local solution. They've created a legacy project that will in turn empower other learners long after they graduate."
The team of students began developing the project in 2017, collaborating with 13 community groups, including the University of British Columbia Okanagan Campus School of Engineering and the Okanagan College Enactus Club.
They also received corporate sponsorship from Big Steel Box to supply their state-of-the-art workspace, bringing the project’s total to over $40,000 in grants, donations, and in-kind donations.
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