Waste is an issue that tends to fly under the radar these days, but should receive more attention- in Sao Paulo alone, 10 tons of garbage is dumped in surrounding landfills every day. In 1999 two entrepreneurs saw a new challenge amidst the piles of used materials in their hometown, and founded Oxil Reciclagem de Plasticos to take advantage of the opportunity this unique environmental threat created.

In her profile of the company, Kelly Desy finds that there is a surprisingly high demand for recycled plastics, totaling 17.5% of the total plastics market. The founders of Oxil turned the waste issue around to begin recycling and repurposing used plastics, producing 140 tons of resins per month and selling the entire stock.Kelly?s article also shows how the company includes an important social component, hiring 50-60 employees from local women?s cooperatives to help sort the incoming material. While this may not seem like much at face value, these women actually comprise the bulk of Oxil?s employees, demonstrating the variety of ways in which Oxil is a benefit to its community.

Check out the full article and you just might start looking at your waste bin differently.