Leave no stone unturned.
Category News
Leave no stone unturned.
This has become our mantra during the exciting yet extraordinarily challenging journey of building a sustainable and transformational recycling enterprise in East London, South Africa.
Not too long ago, things felt "stuck" in place, where no matter how God-inspired and meaningful the work seemed, expenses far exceeded revenue in a very tough industry, as remaining support resources quickly dwindled.
Then one day, in August 2020 and right in the middle of COVID lock-down, we met David Bernstein - the owner of Car Connexion, a local auto sales business. His demonstrated commitment toward cleaning the local environment led to our envisioning how to pursue this together practically on a larger scale. And within a few days he had reached out to business contacts and found 15 others who were also willing to regularly sponsor the clean-up of identified areas in the city problematic with illegal dumping, excessive litter and long-neglected overgrowth. Thus began this arm of our enterprise, at the most unlikely of times, and with it a fresh injection of new vision and hope for what was possible despite immense challenges.
As a "turned stone", David has proven to be a pioneer, who continues to actively support us, help in a myriad of ways, and champion the general cause.
Next, in January 2021 Mel McGarry, a dear friend, connected us with the Directors of Investpro - a real estate firm and her company of employment. They were hungry to go beyond "business as usual" and get practically involved in positive environmental and social change in the city. It was a natural connection from the start, and they quickly mobilized two like-minded associate businesses (Charteris & Barnes, an accounting firm; and BKR Inc, a legal firm) and jointly "adopted" a beautiful local beach to help clean and maintain. We have since expanded to additional areas through this partnership, and even better, these businesses send teams of volunteers every Monday morning to help us do the cleaning.
Next, in January 2021 Mel McGarry, a dear friend, connected us with the Directors of Investpro - a real estate firm and her company of employment. They were hungry to go beyond "business as usual" and get practically involved in positive environmental and social change in the city. It was a natural connection from the start, and they quickly mobilized two like-minded associate businesses (Charteris & Barnes, an accounting firm; and BKR Inc, a legal firm) and jointly "adopted" a beautiful local beach to help clean and maintain. We have since expanded to additional areas through this partnership, and even better, these businesses send teams of volunteers every Monday morning to help us do the cleaning.
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Furthermore, Investpro has opened additional opportunities for us on properties they manage, such as grass cutting & gardening at an industrial park and access to bulk recyclable cardboard waste at a grocery store - all of which help generate more employment & skills development opportunities for local youth and help us become more sustainable. And they have introduced us to the regional Chamber of Business, where we have subsequently become highly involved at a more systemic level through Waste Management, Business development, and Youth committees.
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Author Dr Scott Worley
Published 26 Oct 2021 / Views -