The Power of Imagination …

This may look like a strange building at first glance but it’s actually the end product of an amazing re-cycling idea.

The small village of Granados, in central Guatemala was badly in need of a school. The community could barely afford books, let alone have money to build a schoolhouse. It looked like an impossible situation until a young Peace Corps volunteer by the name of Laura Kutner put her mind and her imagination to work.

Building materials such as brick or wood were prohibitively expensive but, as she wandered the streets wondering how to approach this problem she became aware of the abundance of plastic waste she saw. Why not put this to use?

Laura presented her idea and the enthusiasm grew. Local “Hug It Forward” volunteers joined her Peace Corps group and, with the help of the children they gathered over 5,000 plastic bottles which they stuffed with other trash and these were used to construct the walls. The whole community was involved by the time the building was completed … total cost $3,000.



Isn’t this inspiring? I often feel like a pessimistic and world-weary blogger but this really lifts my spirits. Let’s hope that the idea catches on