BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20. Plastic waste must be
perceived not merely as an environmental liability, but as a viable
resource capable of driving innovation and generating new
employment opportunities, Sinan Kitagenda Tiki, CEO and Co-founder
of WastePlus, said, Trend reports.


He made the remarks during a session titled "Closing the Loop:
Advancing Waste Management on the Path to a Circular Economy" held
within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum
(WUF13) in Baku.


During his address, Tiki shared that in Uganda, plastic waste
was routinely repurposed by children to manufacture makeshift
soccer balls. "For most people, it is just a plastic container. But
for us in our childhood, it was a soccer ball," he noted. According
to him, such formative experiences from an early age shaped an
understanding of how waste materials can receive a second life and
undergo repetitive reuse.


Tiki recounted that during his university years, he confronted a
severe absence of an efficient waste management system. "I could
not imagine that the university I felt so proud of would find
itself in a worse state than my primary school. Waste lay
everywhere, and organized collection points were completely
nonexistent," he said.


This operational gap propelled him into environmental activism.
Alongside fellow students, he organized initial sustainability
initiatives and established a student group focused on ecology and
waste management.


According to Tiki, years of hands-on experience led him to the
conclusion that the waste crisis cannot undergo resolution solely
through collection mechanisms. "We realized that waste holds
inherent value. If plastic bottles continue to enter production, it
follows that we must seek superior solutions for their cyclical
reuse," he emphasized.


He noted that following his graduation, he began experimenting
with various plastic recycling modalities and constructing
innovative solutions based on recycled inputs. One such project
culminated in manufacturing the first marine vessel constructed
entirely from recycled plastic.


"This single project allowed for the creation of roughly 60
temporary jobs and successfully extracted over 10,000 plastic
bottles from the natural environment," Tiki reported.







The expansion of the circular economy and the strategic backing
of youth-led initiatives possess the capacity to play a pivotal
role in resolving the global waste crisis and shaping sustainable
municipal environments, the CEO concluded.


Today marks the fourth day of WUF13 in Baku.


The first day included a ministerial meeting dedicated to the
New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, assemblies for women
and civil society, business sessions, and discussions on urban
prosperity. An official ceremony marking the raising of the UN and
Azerbaijani flags also took place.


The second day stood out for the inaugural Leaders' Summit,
featuring high-level discussions on the global housing crisis,
urbanization policy, and urban resilience. Concurrently, the
opening of the Mexico City pavilion took place, serving as a
significant platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin
American region and preparing for WUF14.


The third day of WUF13 featured a comprehensive program of
events covering the global housing crisis, the formation of safe
and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence
and urban governance, green urbanization, social equity, and
sustainable transport.


WUF13, which has attracted more than 40,000 registered
participants from 182 countries, will continue until May 22. Held
under the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and
communities,” the forum brings together governments, international
organizations, experts, and representatives of civil society to
strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban
development.