The OEM has joined Thread International to help Haitians recycle landfill plastic.
On the Truitier landfill, near Port-au-Prince in Haiti, many children spend their days filtering through mounds of rubbish looking for “recyclables to sell” instead of attending school, reported blmedia. For many families this is their only “source of income”, and the dangers they face while working for hours are hazardous and unhealthy.
At a Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) meeting, HP Inc and partners “announced a three-year programme” to aid the families who work at the landfill by giving them “educational opportunities”, which include “more than 200 scholarships”, medical examinations and “health and safety training”.
HP Inc’s part in the strategy will be to “repurchase recycled plastics” for use in its cartridge recycling programme. The whole of the initiative has been planned to invest in the people of Haiti so that they can develop and thrive through “better recycling practices”. The report noted that HP Inc wants to develop a more “inclusive and circular economy” that is environmentally healthy as well as “the people who work in its global supply chains”.
Nate Hurst, HP Inc’s Chief Sustainability and Social Impact Officer, commented: “For many families near Truitier, the only revenue they ever see comes from the plastic recyclables their children collect in this landfill. We couldn’t turn a blind eye to the situation in Haiti. Most of those kids and their immediate families are struggling. They need assistance. And with our partners, we are offering them a chance to build a better future for themselves – with dignity.”
HP Inc has also agreed to “purchase recycled PET plastic from the landfill to make new HP print cartridges”, something the company has done around the world, and the OEM is noted for using “more than one million [plastic] bottles each day” producing “in excess of three billion ink cartridges” by using “recycled materials”.
William McDonough Architect and Designer and a developer of “sustainable environment, design and development”, said: “Through this commitment to action, HP continues to lead the industry toward a more inclusive circular economy. They are benefitting the people in need in Haiti through positive economic, social and environmental actions.”