Sep 10, 2024 - World
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Kids cashing in recyclable materials at the Banco Cooperativo del Estudiante in Arequipa, Peru. Source: via Noticias Telemundo
A special "eco-bank" in Peru started by a teenager helps kids earn money from recycling plastic, cardboard or newspapers.
State of play: José Quisocala, 19, started the Banco Cooperativo del Estudiante Bartselana two years ago in Arequipa, and this year expanded it to Lima, the Peruvian capital.
- The bank takes in recyclable waste from kids, which it then carries to an industrial recycling plant that pays for the material by the kilo.
- The corresponding cash is then put into accounts set up by the children that took in the waste. They can use the funds to pay for school supplies, food or other things.
- Quisocala says there are about 9,000 clients so far.
What they're saying: "We have kids who've learned to collect all the recyclables in their neighborhood to bring in, and who've taught their parents to collect recyclables in their workplace as well," Quisocala tells Noticias Telemundo.
