Educate, empower, inspire: Zukunftsmobil imparts plastics knowledge to young people

In an interview with K-Mag, Nick Link talks about what set the ball rolling for the development of the Zukunftsmobil, how it has developed into a mobile educational project and why it is so important to get young people interested in the sustainable use of plastics.

Mr Link, with the Zukunftsmobil (formerly the Kunststoffmobil), you want to bring young people closer to the topic of plastics. How did the idea come about?

Nick Link: One of our managing directors came up with the idea of using this plastic recycling project for public relations work with the support of our trainees via the "Precious Plastic" approach by industrial designer Dave Hakkens.

Together with members of our company's youth and apprentice representatives, the technical training management then developed a concept for the Kunststoffmobil initiative, which has since been renamed "Zukunftsmobil". Two aspects took centre stage: firstly, the trainees were to act as ambassadors for their industry and disseminate information about plastics, recycling and the Circular Economy to the public. Secondly, in connection with their special commitment, they were to be given the opportunity to expand their expertise beyond their actual field of work. This is because the initiative brings them into contact with business processes and project management working methods. The concept convinced the Pöppelmann advisory board and management and so the Kunststoffmobil initiative was launched in spring 2018.

Implementation began with the construction of a hand-operated shredder by an interdisciplinary team of trainees. It became a visitor magnet during its first public "appearance" at the 2018 Researchers' Day at the local industrial museum. The children and their families were able to make their own regrind from used plastic cups. The construction of an extruder followed. Since 2021, the initiative has also been able to use a suitable company vehicle to transport the recycling machines. Since then, the Zukunftsmobil has actually been "mobile", travelling to schools, trade fairs and events.

Who is the offer aimed at?

Link: Our workshop is suitable for all ages. The content is then adapted to the respective age. Above all, we want to support teachers at schools in Lohne and the surrounding area in providing their pupils with professional information on the topic of sustainability and teaching them how to dispose of plastic products correctly. We want to show how this recyclable material can be preserved for further product lives in the interests of the Circular Economy and resource conservation.

What can schoolchildren expect from a visit to the Zukunftsmobil?

Link: We offer an interactive workshop with self-built exhibits on the topic of plastic and how to recycle it - the keyword here is "Circular Economy". We will start by explaining the correct way to separate waste into the usual blue bin, yellow bin and black bin. In the next step, we demonstrate mechanical shredding in our shredder before moving on to the production of ready-to-use PCR granulate in the extruder. In the final section of our workshop, we then use the granulate to produce small items for the pupils. This always goes down particularly well with the younger ones.

You say that plastic is not the cause of the problem, but part of the solution. How do you communicate this to the pupils?

Link: In many cases, plastic is the best and often the only way to develop sustainable product solutions. We explain that plastic products contribute to climate protection. The rotor blades of wind turbines are made of plastic, as are parts of solar cells and systems. Cars save a lot of weight thanks to lightweight plastic components. This in turn reduces paraffin and petrol consumption. Packaging extends the shelf life of fresh food. This is important because a lot of greenhouse gas emissions are generated during the production of food - much more than during the production of the packaging.

At one station, we use examples to show how harmful it is to use composite packaging to suggest on the outside that it is supposedly environmentally friendly paper packaging, but which is coated with plastic on the inside - because of the requirements for shelf life and hygiene. Such packaging is no longer recyclable, in contrast to pure plastic packaging made from mono-materials.

What feedback have you received from the participants so far?

Link: So far, we have received consistently positive feedback on our initiative, with some exciting suggestions on how we can improve our workshop.

Keyword "improve": What are your future plans for the Zukunftsmobil?

Link: In future, we would like to visit schools even more regularly or enrich campaign days in order to educate as many people as possible about the correct use of plastic and also to raise awareness of the benefits of this material. We are also planning downloadable teaching units in preparation for our visit to the classroom, so that the pupils can be informed by the teacher alone, even without our presence.

Why do you think it is important to teach children about plastics at an early age?

Link: As children are also exposed to an enormous flood of information from a very early age, we want to create a well-founded basis for them to form their own opinions at an early stage. This is also important in the long term in order to arouse interest in starting a career in our industry. We want to create a knowledge base and use our expertise to engage in critical dialogue on the topic of plastics. After all, we can only achieve our goal of promoting sustainable plastics processing for the Circular Economy if everyone involved, from consumers to manufacturers, joins in.