The most you can do is refuse that free polythene pack offered at shops, and flaunt your cloth bags. But what about the tonnes of waste we have already piled up and most, that never reach the recycler’s doorstep? Include it in your wardrobe!

'Thunk’ is a team of young designers who were absolutely kicked about making waste a part of fashion, and saw a unique appeal in the look that it could create.
Retailing apart, Thunk is in negotiations with two large IT services firms to buy waste from them and sell them corporate gifts made of the same material.

GREEN TEAM EFFORT 
“I was working with Daily Dump as part of my college project and in the process, got in touch with several experts from the area of waste management. I saw that everyone was working for a pressing cause, but in isolation. How about getting everyone together and creating a new statement?” explains Suren Vikash U, who conceived the idea when he was a student at the Shrishti School of Design, a year ago.

ACROSS THE CITY 
The designers source waste from different parts of city, including ITPB, UB City, hotels, IT companies and others. The plastic is shredded and waste fabric from export rejects is woven into patterns to create a fabric by traditional sari weavers at Pollachi. Slum women from Hoskote segregate the waste and clean it.

The team is creating lifestyle accessories like bags, wallets, purses, home ranges like curtains, table cloths, mats, stationary range like laptop cases, pen holders and many others. They are durable as most waste products like tetra packs have a life of over 50 years. Automobile waste like tyres is being used to make furniture. The team believes that everyone wants to do their bit for the environment but most don’t have the time or resources. 

Eco-friendly products are currently expensive and ‘Thunk’ is trying to bring them down to the price of normal products. “This is a good time to do this,” Suren said. 

FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 
Currently, Bangalore generates 2,000 tonne of waste, 10% of which is recycled. The rest is not recyclable primarily because it is not segregated. The down cyclers around the city use toxins and work in unhygienic conditions. The team is looking at scaling up their production, as they will be supplying to different outlets like coffee shops, pubs and lifestyle stores soon. For details, contact 9677757517.