Turning Waste Into Reusable Material, Maltese Architecture Students Are Taking Part In Milan Design Week
Maltese architecture students will take part in the Milan Design Week for the first time ever, pitching a project that turns land and sea waste into useable material.
The idea came from four Maltese architecture students, affiliates of SACES (the Society for Architecture and Civil Engineering). Together, they made a system that transforms discarded paper and seaweed into shades or biodegradable containers.
Lovin Malta sat with SACES President David DeBattista, who shed more light on the project.
Tara Zikic, Owen Degorgio, Martina Chetcuti and Luke Scicluna are the architecture students behind the project
“We want to promote sustainability by recycling pollution,” David said, “so our team found a way to reuse paper waste and algae from beaches in Malta.”
The project will essentially mix the two together into a ‘pulp’ that could be molded into structures.
“Basically, it’s the same method one would use to create paper, but we would mix in the seaweed because it would act as a fiber that strengthens it.”
SACES’ attendance will see the group share the stage alongside some big guns, some of which will boast some high-end, high-budget projects.
The golden opportunity came after a representative of the event happened upon a local expo of the architectural community, and he couldn’t help but give them a chance to take it a step further.
“Preparations are in full swing, and as a student organisation, we are looking forward to this international event, which to us, is a major accomplishment.”
Unfortunately, we have not been made to see the end product just yet, but an example of how the pulp can be put to good use can be seen in the design-plan below.
“Nature recycles everything, humans do not.”
The group’s main goal was one: sustainability. “The planet cannot cope with all the pollution from both land and sea. That was our drive behind the project.”
In a few steps, and through this initiative, waste management will be employed as a means to lengthen an object’s lifespan beyond its desired purpose.
“The abundance of dry seaweed which accumulates on shores has become a global matter which, as stated by specialists, is a result of global warming, and the situation is no different in Malta.”
The team’s installation will be presented at the Super Design Show, which will take place at Milan Design Week 2022 in June.
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