More High School Students Are Upcycling Plastic Bags To Make Sleeping Mats For The Homeless

Jan 21, 2019 by apost team

High School Students Come Together To Recycle Plastic Bags Into Sleeping Bags For Homeless People

It’s been estimated that approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used by consumers each and every year. To simplify things, that’s like each person on Earth using one bag each day. We’re all aware of how plastic is a detriment to our environment, so many people try to find ways to recycle plastic when they can.

Plastic can end up littering in areas such as the streets and even the ocean, having negative impacts on the creatures that live there. In the past few years, many people have been spreading awareness about how to use less plastic materials and using alternatives instead in order to attempt to save the environment.

As a result, many people have reduced or cut down on their consumption of plastic due to the hazards it causes nature, but now groups of students are taking things into their own hands in order to make a difference in the world.

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In states all across the country, such as Michigan and Indiana, mindful high school students are using their brainpower to recycle and reuse these wasteful plastic bags.

In one particular school, Hatboro-Horsham High School, located in Pennsylvania, a senior named Nancy Gabelin has organized a club called the Interact Club, where students try to make a difference in the lives of others.

What do these students do, however? They spend their extra free class period making plastic yarn out of plastic bags, which they call “plarn.” They locate used plastic bags and alter them into yarn by twisting and tying it together, making strips before rolling them around wooden pegs. This takes some serious crochet talent!

The final result of their efforts? A sleeping mat of sorts that is six feet long and can help the homeless. Even a simple thing like a bed made out of recycled materials can make a huge difference in someone’s life, and these kids are really doing their best to make a change in the world.

The mats are specifically designed to be comfortable and warm for people that need them the most. The best part about it?

They are resistant to water and can help deter bugs from disturbing the homeless. You can learn more about the sleeping mat program in the video below. 

What do you think about the student’s efforts? Have you tried to cut back on your plastic consumption? Do you have any cool upcycling project that utilizes materials that would otherwise have gone to wast in a creative way too? We want to know, so make sure to tell us - and pass this along to your friends to inspire them to upcycle too!