Rescue The Planet

by Ibrahim Kollab

Meet Ibrahim, he is a young environment and social activist in the middle of Jordan. His desire has been embodied by his initiative attitude and energy. According to the Jordanian Ministry of Environment, each Jordanian person uses 500 bags yearly, and there are approximately 10 million Jordanians, so this is a huge environmental disaster that draws the attention of Ibrahim. “Climate change is a fundamental challenge for the continuation of human life on this planet. According to the World Health Organization, it is estimated that 160,000 deaths since 1950 are directly linked to climate change,” Ibrahim said.

It makes me sad that many people around the world do not care about nature and green spaces, and they think that the impact of their negative behaviour towards the environment will only appear in the long run. This is a wrong ideology, the reason being that it is possible to transfer the effects of toxic chemicals to the human body through animals that get their food from polluted nature and greenery from plastic bags we leave in them without any self-censorship or clear conscience on this issue. When I see plastic waste in green spaces, I see the true form of the concept of visual pollution, as it prevents us from enjoying the beautiful landscapes, and negatively and directly affects the sustainability of livestock, which will directly affect our lives as humans and ecosystems. I don't know how long we will live this life, but I am quite sure that nature has rights over us like human rights, and we should be proud, cherish and preserve our environmental identity as our children.

The Jordanian Ministry of Environment issued a decision not to produce plastic bags nearly 3 years ago, and it was emphasized that the application of the Environmental Protection Law to violators would happen. However, this decision has not been implemented or even passed. As we know, plastic bags are made of toxic chemicals such as polyethene, which makes them not biodegradable until after hundreds of years. Therefore, I am addressing this message to the Jordanian Ministry of Environment, to the decision-makers in this regard, to everyone who can implement and move forward this decision. We ask you to speed up the protection of the environmental system, contribute to the continuity of human life, save the planet and green spaces, and take actual and real measures through the implementation and application. This should be in coordination with the industry and trade sectors, and the closure of all plastic factories in Jordan, which number more than 400 factories - according to the Jordanian Ministry of Environment. Also not to be lenient or tolerate anyone who violates the law on environmental protection. Let this be a priority, and let us cooperate so we all get out of this catastrophe.

For me, the natural world, in a personal way, made me gain a sense of connection with these items, and the environment in which they were found. I gained the conﬁdence to explore further and create something new from what I found.

On the 3rd of November 2020, Ibrahim launched a startup that is mainly working on tote bags as a replacement for plastic bags with unique touches of embroidery on them. This startup’s name is “ Kheit “, and the ﬁrst theme used was spreading awareness about environmental issues in solidarity with gender equality and women's empowerment. “ Kheit “ is one of the youth paths that innovate in extracting helpful solutions for the environment, and aims to empower Jordanian youth and women at the same time. The idea of the project is to make canvas bags that can be used as an alternative to plastic bags that harm the environment, basically, one of the goals to work on under the SDGs (Goal 13 climate action). The good thing about “Kheit” products is that the product can be used more than once and permanently because the products are based on the principle of making environmentally friendly bags to be used as an alternative to plastic bags.

However, “Kheit” was not only a matter of “productivity only”, but the organizers deliberately designed the project for these products to feature awareness messages that are embroidered on those canvas bags. The project is based on the principle of moderate proﬁt, of which an estimated 20% goes to the King Hussein Cancer Center, to help patients in the ﬁrst theme, which is part of the social responsibility that Kollab sees as imposed on institutions. The project will have a societal role in the next theme by giving awareness sessions, drawing murals, and creating a silent theatre, all regarding how we preserve the environmental system and green spaces.

“The phrases that are placed on the bags are written in the dialect of the society we are addressing and which we seek to become a partner with in the project to protect the environment, which should be part of the daily routine of people.“

-Some of the phrases used to indicate the support for women and youth in Jordan society that spreading awareness throughout Kheits' designs embroidery feature-

Those partnerships, Kollab explains, would increase the reach of those messages to the largest possible number of people/ It aims in its entirety to raise awareness regarding how to preserve the environment, in addition to other social messages such as the issue of “gender equality, and the push to empower women and their ability to work and be creative at all times.”

About

883530bd-cea4-4bfd-9ea4-78cde6bce6cb - Ibrahim Kollab.jpg

Ibrahim Kollab is a passionate and entrepreneur person. Kollab has volunteered with different NGOs & CBOs since 2012, working with the INGOs sector in Jordan. Kollab has participated in many projects under Erasmus+ in different European countries. Kollab is the Founder & CEO of Kheit. It is the first company in the Middle East that merged five of the SDGs together at the same time. Kollab has been a volunteer with HeForShe since 2016, then he was the Teams Director. Kollab is the Co-Coordinator of the movement in Jordan. HeForShe is a solidarity movement for supporting Gender Equality matter around the world. Kollab is committed to Sustainable Development Goals SDGs especially goals 5, 8, 10, 13, and 17. Kollab is always looking for opportunities that make him develop his personality more. Kollab would love to travel around the world to learn more about different cultures which reflects something good for our imagination and how we could make new friendships around the world.