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TAKING A STAND:(from left to right)-Wasted team members Brendon D’cruz, Eeshita Kapadiya,Sonia Parekh and Chandni Sawlani
TAKING A STAND:(from left to right)-Wasted team members Brendon D'cruz, Eeshita Kapadiya,Sonia Parekh and Chandni Sawlani

Find out how a group of UAE youngsters is nurturing a culture of generosity in Dubai through a unique upcycling project

By Janice Rodrigues

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Published: Fri 4 Sep 2015, 12:00 AM

Last updated: Fri 11 Sep 2015, 7:14 PM

Imagine you are waiting in line at a toll road. When it's finally your turn to pay, you reach for your wallet - only to be told that the person ahead of you has already paid your bill. This simple act of kindness from a stranger leaves you with a choice - should you drive ahead, with your day feeling just a little better, or should you pay for the person next in line to keep the act of kindness going?

Some of the quirky creations,made from scrap
This is how the group behind Wasted, a team that converts junk into useful products, explains their 'pay it forward' concept. Team members Sonia Parekh, Chandni Sawlani, Eeshita Kapadiya, Khushboo Wadhwani and Brendon D'cruz started the project in March, not just to encourage people in Dubai to be more aware of wastage, but also inject more goodwill into the country. If you ever stop by their stall (which runs in select flea markets in the UAE), you'll discover that whatever item you pick up is yours to take - and, in turn, you are encouraged to pay an amount (any amount) to make sure someone else takes home a gift too.

SPREADING POSITIVITY:The complete Wasted team includes (clockwise from foreground) Eeshita,Chandni, Sonia, Brendon and Khushboo
"The concept of 'paying it forward' is already well-known abroad," explains Chandni, who works with online gifting company Injoy Giving. "It follows the idea that when someone does something good for you, instead of paying them back, pay it forward by doing a good deed to someone else. Two years ago, during Christmas season in Nevada, for instance, customers at a Starbucks store 'paid it forward' 73 times. That means 73 people actually chose to buy coffee for a complete stranger who was next in line, simply as an act of good faith."

Messages written by buyers for the next customer
"Someone had to bring it to Dubai," adds Sonia, events manager and primary founder of Wasted. "I'm glad it got to be us."
The idea behind the project fell into place when Sonia found a box of scrap while over at Chandni's place. "I remember joking about how we should upcycle it, because we've always loved craft," recalls Sonia, "and also because we are environmentally conscious. But the idea kept getting stalled. Then one day, while in India, I went to a climate-change conference in Delhi, and it just hit me. I needed to do something, so I spoke to the rest of the group and we decided to start a project in upcycling, by selling products we made ourselves out of things that would otherwise just wind up in the trash. But we weren't in it for the profit, which is why we didn't want to run this as a normal business."

BARGAIN BUYS: Customers at the Wasted stall over at ARTE Market in May were surprised to learn they could pick up whatever they wanted for free
This is how it all materialised: the five youngsters, who all have full-time jobs on the side, decided to take a leap of faith and got their first stall at the Arte Market in Times Square Centre in March, where visitors were stunned to discover that they could pick up any product for free as the previous buyer had already paid for it. They even took the concept to a whole new level by encouraging the person to write a little note for the next customer - to add more of a human element to the transaction. 
"The response was phenomenal," recalls Brendon, who works as a field engineer. "In a couple of hours, our table was empty. Even more amazing was the response we got from people. We had a woman who wanted to take her time with the note, and came back having scribbled a 'forgiveness exercise' onto it. Another time, a man paid us Dh200 not because he wanted to buy anything, but simply because he wanted to encourage the cause."

If you're wondering how sustainable it is to run an enterprise that has no price tags and relies solely on the goodness of human beings - it turns out, the answer is very. The group has managed to generate enough to allow them to hold tables at numerous platforms such as Ripe Market - both in Dubai and Abu Dhabi - as well as Arte Market.
"The sole reason we are able to keep doing this is because of the generosity of the people of Dubai," says Sonia. "Although we don't have price tags, we can pay for everything, hold a table and keep doing it, again and again. People in Dubai are just waiting for a chance to give. A lot of the people get really excited when they come to our stall because it gives them an opportunity to do something good for another person."
"Human beings are intrinsically good," adds Chandni. "They want to be able to help others. You just have to show them how."
However, encouraging a culture of generosity is not their only goal. The team also firmly believes in the importance of recycling, reusing, and cutting down waste. They currently sell everything from handmade jewellery and pencil stands to wall hangings and photo frames - all made out of items that would have otherwise been dumped into a garbage can. Which means a lot of time is spent collecting used glass bottles, plastic spoons and the like, and watching DIY videos to figure out how to convert these pieces into funky items. But according to the five pals, it is all worth it.
"We were disturbed by the massive amounts of waste produced in our daily lives and wanted to address this problem," explains Sonia.
"In this part of the world, we tend to take our resources for granted because we don't face a lot of shortages," adds Chandni. "But it is very painful when you start thinking about it. For instance, I started collecting the plastic bags in my house, and, within a week, the number of bags we had collected was overwhelming. The minute you become aware of it, you have to do something." 
It's almost surprising to see such a high level of dedication and awareness among the youngsters, and yet, as the team emphasises, that shouldn't be the case. Youngsters are quite capable of understanding important issues and taking a stand, says Sonia.
"I think the youth of today are a lot more aware of these issues," says Sonia. "We know the challenges, but we come with a lot more faith and goodness, and are less cynical."
"Everyone our age has gone through environmental studies," says Brendon, who collects the plastic bags from stores he goes to often, and then gives them all back after a month. "Somewhere deep down, we know that all the excess waste we are creating is bad for the environment, but after a point, we ignore it. It just goes to the back of our minds. But the truth is that we can't afford to make the same mistakes our elders made. We have to be more responsible."
It's not just important to take a stand for something you believe in, the team emphasise, but to do it right away. "A lot of people wait till they get a job and then think about making a difference. But you can do it right now. If you are passionate about something, don't wait until your life is settled to start acting on it - by that time, it might be too late."
All the members of team Wasted are under the age of 25, but together they're teaching, old and young alike, important lessons in being environmentally conscious as well as being generous. So the next time you happen to run into a Wasted stall - or anywhere as simple as a coffee shop, really - think about spending a few extra bucks to pay for the next person. You might end up spending more than you thought you would, but you'll be making someone else's day a whole lot better. And that is priceless. 
janice@khaleejtimes.com


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