The issue of waste is very important in the UAE, which is a society that generates a large amount of waste per person. In a country that generated almost 4.8 million tonnes of trash in 2010, the issue of recycling is not a light matter.

Dubai generates one of the highest per capita waste in the world. Residents keep adding to this waste without a second thought and sadly most of this waste can be avoided in the first place or recycled. Recycling is about closing the loop and changing the structure of the economy. If we can turn garbage into new raw material it's a much more efficient economy.

To encourage residents for recycling , there are many recycling and waste management companies in UAE devoted to protecting the environment through the means of action programs and community involvement. The overall objective of these companies/agencies is to contribute positively to the advancement of sustainable development in Dubai and the UAE by acting as a focal point for people of all nationalities and ages concerned with environmental protection and responsible waste management.

 

To challenge myself for more and more recyleables and to encourage and support  most of these environment conserving companies , I try to collect maximum recycleables to be able to give to most of these companies to support them. I collect papers , plastics bottles and polybags , aluminium cans and batteries within my home , from neighbourhood and from my parents? offices and their contacts as well. Then I give to following recycling & waste management companies :

1)Enviroserve

2)Bee'ah

3)Dubai Municipality

4)Dulsco

5)TCI-The Change Initiative

6)Zenath Recycling & Waste Management

7)Sims Recycling

All of the above have different ways of appreciating and recognising recycling contributors. While Bee'ah gives incentive points which can be redeemed for shopping , Enviroserve gives certificates , Dulsco and Dubai municipality gives prizes .

With more than 2,000 volunteers from across UAE, Emirates Environmental Group (EEG)  considered as one of the most active environmental NGO's in the region , has unique way to recognize , appreciate and award it's green leaders in the UAE for their efforts in collecting recycleables to keep reusable materials away from landfill sites.

 

Through it's "Neighbourhood Recycling Programme" , EEG honours it's recycling contributors by awarding them with 1 tree under their name for every 500kg paper . Likewise there is a criteria for plastic , beverage cartons or batteries. If you collect minimum decided qty of any of these recycleables and give to EEG they give you tree under your name.

 

Around the month of July every year, EEG announces "Neighbourhood Recycling Campaign" as per which you are supposed to register for the campaign by making a poster , getting it approved from EEG , then spreading awareness in your neighbourhood & community , collecting recycleables from them as per the set qty/criteria and giving to EEG to qualify for trees under your name. Last year I got 3 trees in my name , before that 2 trees and this year too I was awarded 2 trees under my name (I gave 1300 kg paper) which were to be planted in nationwide EEG's tree plantation event which was held today in Ajman.

 

I was pleased to contribute towards environment and in turn getting 2 trees in my name as award. I went with my family to the site of tree plantation . I picked "Neem" trees which is one of the best tree having medicinal properties and is also considered sacred and evil killer. There were many other people there who were qualified for trees and had come to plant them in their names. All of us had smiles of accomplishment on our faces.

 

For me as Tunza Eco Generation Ambassador , What better occasion that this to promote Tunza Eco Gen because I knew that all those who were present there were environmentally active , were there to plant their awarded trees. So I had planned a small Tunza Eco Gen promotional event there.  After tree plantation , I opened Tunza Eco Gen banner . Good part was the moment I opened the TEG banner , people started coming towards me asking what is Tunza Eco Gen. I then gathered more people and started talking about Tunza Eco Gen. They listened very carefully , asked some inquisitive questions about TEG and were thrilled to know about TEG?s incentive programs like Ambassador program , monthly event , GYELS etc. Soon my friend and fellow Eco Gen Ambassador Rohan Kapur came and joined me in promoting TEG. While we were talking to one group of people , we saw another group of people , standing bit far off , dressed in green shirts looking at us very interestingly. After we were done with this group , we went to the green shirt group. They asked us about TEG. The interaction with this group was the best as this group belonged to Savoy hotel  which scooped three green awards for their green efforts from Dubai?s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing . We were so glad to know more about this hotel. Savoy Hotel  managed to save 9 per cent of electricity across their 20 hotels – that works out to an equivalent of free electricity for a year for one hotel.That's a saving of around $1 million a year – and that?s a lot of money. Mr. Faroukh Sunny , General manager of Savoy hotel spoke to us and told us that they ask their  guests to keep bottles and cans separate , to only put the water heater on 20 minutes before use, rather than have it on 24/7 and ask their staff to clean their rooms, sheets, towels say twice a week rather than every day.

Installing special green-friendly water aerator devices in their taps and toilets has seen the Savoy save "million gallons of water each year". That's the (carbon-footprint) equivalent of five round trips from Dubai to London on the big A380 Airbus jumbo jets.

 

Mr. Faroukh Sunny , General manager of Savoy hotel, was very thrilled to know about us as environment ambassador by Tunza Eco Gen . When I told him about my campaigns , especially my recent  "Waste segregation system I put in our building " , he and his team gave a loud applause . He appreciated us a lot and offered us his and his hotel's full support for any of our environment campaign.

 

Overall , this tree plantation was a very successful event today. I met another friend and TEG Ambassador Mohit Talreja .

 

All the groups whom we told about Tunza Eco Gen , said they would like their children to join TEG forum as they themselves were all older than 24 years . We gave them our cards for any clarification/help they /their children may need in opening their account with Tunza Eco Gen