ETCO PARTICIPATES IN THE 2024 ANNUAL CIRCULAR PACKAGING CONFERENCE
The Loresho air smelled of cut grass and diesel from the road outside Shamba Events — the kind of Nairobi morning where you button your jacket and still hope for tea. On 22 October 2024, day one of the Kenya Extended Producer Responsibility Organisation (KEPRO) Annual Circular Packaging Conference, ETCO stepped into a room where packaging was not just “waste” but a design problem the whole country is trying to solve.
The theme hung over every session: Advancing Circularity — Innovating for Sustainable Packaging Solutions. Between panels, people leaned across aisles swapping cards and honest frustrations: thin films that choke recyclers, labels that confuse sorting lines, policies racing behind reality. It is easy to feel small in that conversation; it is also where community organisations belong, because we see the end of the pipe every day.
Day two, 23 October, stretched the learning beyond PowerPoint. KEPRO organised a Circular Tour for stakeholders along the value chain — aggregators, recyclers, and a stop at the Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute (KIRDI). Watching material move from pile to process makes the jargon evaporate. You stop talking about “circularity” in the abstract and start asking practical questions: who collects, who pays, who gets hurt when the system fails?
We left with notebooks fuller than our pockets — and with a clearer line between conference optimism and the muddy work back in Kibera. If you work in packaging or logistics and want to connect what you design with what we handle on the ground, reach out. The best ideas die without honest feedback from neighbourhoods like ours.
🌍 World Earth Day Highlights
We had an incredible time commemorating World Earth Day alongside amazing partners and community champions. It was a pleasure connecting with the Peace Pulse 254 team—Mr. Patrick, Madam Grace, and Mr. Immanuel—as well as the Nairobi Rivers Commission (NRC), led by Community Lead Commissioner Madam Eva Muhia.
Invitation - World Earth Day
As we celebrate World Earth Day – 6th Edition under the theme “Our Power, Our Planet.” 🌍 We warmly invite community members, partners, and stakeholders to be part of this impactful day focused on community resilience, sustainable energy solutions, waste reduction, and improved public health infrastructure.
Easter Feeding Program
Thanks to Tim Ruff and Stephanie, ETCO hosted a warm Easter Friday feeding program for children at our new office—bringing joy, a good meal, and community together in Kibera.