Rotary Club of Morningside and Earthly Touch Foundation Transforming
Lives Through Sustainable Education
The Rotary Club of Morningside, in partnership with Earthly Touch Foundation, continues to
make significant strides in creating a lasting environmental and educational legacy through
the construction of the Eco Education Centre in Diepsloot.
The centre is designed to become a vibrant community hub comprising three key facilities:
- An Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre accommodating 50 children.
- Khensani’s Collection Extra Lessons Centre 100 students, providing academic support for learners.
- A Vocational Training Centre 50 students, equipping young people with practical
environmental and entrepreneurial skills.
Construction of the ECD Centre is now nearing completion. To date, more than 30,000
ecobricks have been incorporated into the building, transforming plastic waste that would
otherwise have ended up in landfills, illegal dumping sites, or waterways into a durable, well-
insulated building material.
The project has also established an eco-garden, installed four eco-toilets, and provided five
JoJo water storage tanks, creating a sustainable learning environment that promotes water
conservation, food security, and environmental stewardship.
Construction has now commenced on the Vocational Training Centre, where 25 unemployed
young people will participate in a six-month environmental skills development programme
delivered in partnership with Seriti Institute. The training will provide practical experience
in:
Community environmental clean-up awareness
- Ecobrick production
- Ecobrick construction methods
- Composting and waste management
- Sustainable gardening
- Entrepreneurship and small business development
The programme is designed not only to improve environmental outcomes but also to create
pathways to employment and self-employment within the growing green economy.
The Environmental Impact
Every ecobrick represents plastic diverted from the environment and given a new purpose.
With more than 30,000 ecobricks already incorporated into the ECD Centre, the project has
repurposed approximately 21 tonnes of plastic waste (assuming an average ecobrick weight
of 700 g).
This has delivered multiple environmental benefits:
- Preventing over 16 tonnes of plastic from entering landfills, rivers, and open spaces.
- Reducing litter and illegal dumping in local communities.
- Preventing plastic from breaking down into harmful microplastics that contaminate soil and water.
- Demonstrating the value of a circular economy by transforming waste into a long-lasting construction resource.
- Reducing demand for conventional building materials with higher embodied carbon, thereby helping to lower greenhouse gas emissions associated with construction.
- Inspiring communities to view waste as a valuable resource rather than a disposal problem.
Beyond the environmental gains, the Eco Education Centre is creating a culture of
sustainability by encouraging schools, businesses, and community members to participate
directly in protecting the environment.
Investing in People and Planet
This project demonstrates that environmental conservation and community development can
go hand in hand. Children will learn in classrooms built from recycled materials, unemployed
youth will gain practical green skills, and the wider community will benefit from improved
educational facilities, cleaner neighbourhoods, and increased environmental awareness.
The Rotary Club of Morningside’s partnership with Earthly Touch Foundation reflects
Rotary’s commitment to creating sustainable, measurable impact by investing in education,
environmental protection, skills development, and community empowerment.
Together, we are proving that every plastic bottle has the potential to become a building
block for a brighter, greener future.
