A UNIVERSITY of South Australia plastic up-cycling initiative will put Limestone Coast schools against one another in a bid to collect thousands of bottlecaps destined for transformation into prosthetic limbs.
Driven by the university’s Mount Gambier campus, a total of $1000 in prizes are on offer for schools which collect the most plastic bottle caps over the next month.
UniSA regional manager Ian McKay said he was excited to engage with the South East schools through the initiative.
“We hope this promotes environmentally conscious and socially responsible students,” Mr McKay said.
“Students will be apart of the whole upcycling process, from collecting the plastic bottlecaps to seeing what the 3D-printed prosthetic hands look
like.
“Not to mention this is a fantastic learning opportunity with prizes up for grabs.”
With schools only returning back to the classroom on Monday, UniSA is hopeful several schools will take up the offer to participate in the program.
Regional engagement officer Chris Ronan said the campus had already sent multiple shipments to Envision in Victoria since starting the initiative in May.
“I think this project makes the process real for the community,” he said.
“Often you will put something in the recycling bin and it sits there and you forget about it.
“It becomes an achievement when you are shown a prosthetic hand or 3D filament created from your recycled plastic.”
Mr Ronan said the project has been “well-received” by the UniSA students and hoped to see the same engagement in schools.
“Everyone had been respectful of the bins which is great,” he said.
“We have not had many people drop things which they were not meant to.
“I think this is a great project which also introduces community services for the younger generation.”
Upon completion, schools will be shown the products their donated bottle caps have made.
