Place Description

The vast majority of the glass bottles on Zanzibar are left by tourists visiting the island. Not being biodegradable, these bottles interfere with the natural environment, littering roads and villages. As Zanzibar has no means of processing glass-waste in a responsible way, the foundation bottle-up was initiated in order to upcycle glass-waste bottles into new products. This is achieved in two phases, to create awareness and to generate an income for the team. Design products are handmade from bottles, such as original home accessories composed of lights, terrazzo bowls and cups to use as stationary or bathroom utility holders.

The sales of these products are a way to fund the second phase of the foundation’s goal: to process large quantities of waste-glass and eliminate all waste-glass as well as to stimulate the local economy – the bottle | brick. The material composition for this brick is developed in the Netherlands at the Delft University of Technology. In the bottle | brick, part of the cement, sand and gravel is replaced with waste-glass, resulting in a brick for local usage that is twice as strong as regular bricks.

bottle-up supports local clean-ups of Michamvi, performed by a privately owned waste management company that also provides the foundation with waste-glass bottles. Part of internal staff-training includes a weekly education day where business, math and weighing skills are taught. The bottle-up collection of beautifully handmade home accessories is available at several shops and hotels on the island.

Products available at:

• Jenga shop, Michamwi
• Nur Beach Hotel, Jambiani
• Jambuono in boutique hotel Mwezi, Jambiani
• Bahati Shop in Paje
• Seasons Lodge, Pongwe
• Qambani Luxury Resort, Michamwi
• Bellevue Guest House, Bwejuu
• Zanzistar, Jambiani
• Zanzibar Retreat Hotel, Matemwe