By Victoria Stone-Meadows
A Dandenong based not-for-profit is taking care of the homeless and the environment with an initiative that provides sleeping mats made from recycled plastic bags.
Carers of Africa (COA) provide counselling and support for people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) and African heritage in Dandenong.
The organisation’s ‘Sleep Well Project’ has work for the dole volunteers looming recycled plastic bags into sleep mats for homeless people in the region.
Carers of Africa collect the donated plastic bags, sort them into those that can be used and volunteers carefully fold and cut the bags into strips called plarn (for plastic yarn).
The plarn is then made into a ball which in turn is used to crochet a sleeping mat.
The mats will be included as part of a package given to homeless people that includes other donated good such as a crocheted pillow, a pillow case, a pair of socks, toothbrush and toothpaste.
Manager at COA Diane Carrick said the organisation decided to pursue the idea after one of their clients brought it to her attention.
“We had a lady come in who had seen the work Carers of Africa did and her daughter had the idea (to make the mats),” she said.
“They had been doing it from their home and we have all seen homeless in the city and this has been going for years so we thought it’s a great idea.”
COA expects to make at least 20 mats and care packages that will be presented to homeless outreach centres this week.
Ms Carrick said the program would continue beyond the presentation though, as she had managed to secure a plastic bag source.
“This will be an ongoing project as I managed to source the national stock of Masters shopping bags,” she said.
“I have 3.6 million bags valued at over $100,000 in storage and each mat takes between 500 and 700 bags to complete.”
Despite having many bags in storage, Ms Carrick said people could always donate plastic bags to the COA office in Dandenong.
“Any donations dropped off to our office in Dandenong and out new office in Ringwood will be accepted as well.”
