Eddy's Good News: Young entrepreneur finds replaces plastic bags and shortfalls in affordable housing

Virgin Radio

21 Aug 2024, 13:15

Every day during his show on Virgin Radio Anthems, Eddy Temple-Morris brings you Good News stories from around the world, to help inject a bit of positivity into your day!

Be sure to listen each day between 2pm and 6pm (Monday - Friday) to hear Eddy's Good News stories (amongst the finest music of course), but if you miss any of them you can catch up on the transcripts of Eddy's most recent stories below:

Wednesday 20th August 2024

A great story of perseverance and focus from India as a young entrepreneur replaces 6 million plastic bags with ones that decompose in 180 days.

Lots of good ideas started up in lockdown and the pandemic put people’s lives in perspective, gave them the emotional strength to pursue their dreams and that’s exactly what Mohammed, from Hyderabad did. He wanted to help change the world for the better and he spotted a gap in the market with small businesses.

They couldn’t afford to switch to even slightly more expensive sustainable plastic bags, or paper bags, so he set about inventing something they could afford. He studied and studied and eventually came up with an idea for biodegradable plastic type bags made from sugar, cellulose, and corn fibres. He managed to get enough funding to set up a factory and he slept in the corner of that factory while setting everything up. Now he has a viable, sustainable business that’s replaced 6 million plastic bags for small businesses in India and he’s inspiring people all over the world.

Via: goodnewsnetwork.org

It’s not just the UK that has a shortfall in affordable housing and our new government is firmly focused on finding solutions.

In the US, specifically in the state of Maine, they have the same problem. 80,000 new homes will be needed over the next 5 years to keep up with demand and echoing the issues we face too, building regulations can take years to change, but one start up is aiming to help plug the gap, with the world’s biggest 3D printer which uses sawdust from the state’s huge lumber industry and is 3D printing cosy and stylish wooden cabins!

Guinness World Records certified their machine as the world’s largest prototype polymer 3D printer, capable of creating a 600 square foot house 96 feet in length, 36 feet in width, and 18 feet tall entirely out of bio-based material and after refining the process, they can now do it in 48 hours!

The houses are great looking too, with a beautifully curved roof, like a flattened arch, which looks like really thick wood that curves downwards and becomes the walls too and incorporates all the conduits builders need for plumbing and electricity. They’re calling it the BioHome. Have a look for yourself.

Via: goodnewsnetwork.org