By: Casha Doemland
“I believe humans have been taking poor care of the planet lately,” begins Antonina Kozlova. “The amount of plastic waste is a huge problem, and everyone should start living and working more sustainably.”
To show her commitment to change, Kozlova teamed up with up fellow classmate Dohn Kanokpon and entered a sustainable competition, Better With Less.
This yearly competition kicks off in November and asks creative minds to produce a packaging design made from sustainable, renewable or recyclable materials. Dubbed the “open idea competition,” they “aim to find new solutions for some of the most frequently used consumer packages, to deliver better experiences with less impact on the environment.” Additionally, according to the website, “the use of mono-materials is preferred.”
The first prize winner receives a cash prize of €10,000 Euros, in addition to a student award for an internship at Metsä Board Packaging Services in Shanghai.
Since the event took place over the winter holiday, the duo collaborated via Facebook chat and email to produce not only the product but the graphic designs and branding as well. “We challenged ourselves to create a product with packaging that could be used,” shares Kanokpon.
Despite the time zone differences and working remotely, the duo came up with 10 pt, a sustainable solution to t-shirt packaging.
The design begins with vivid, cylindrical packaging in contrasting hues of blue, magenta, orange and/or tan. The cotton t-shirts are then rolled up and stored inside, offering a compact and eye-catching package.
Each tube is made like a spiral when reassembled, as the inside of each can features a black and white measuring tape. “We used mummies as our inspiration source,” adds Kanokpon.
In keeping with their zero waste policy, Kanokpon and Kozlova designed the paper pulp caps to be a case for the measuring tape. All in all, the design features only 3% waste, which comes from the triangular piece of paper you have to tear off to get the measuring tape from the tube.
“The tube itself is made from 100% recycled paper, while the caps are made from molded pulp,” states Kozlova. If you don’t need the extra measuring tape, throw it away in the nearest recycling bin.
As innovative as their concept was, the duo did not make it into the top 10 finalists of the competition. But not to fret, Konokpon and Kozlova are still chugging away at their college courses and other projects. And, if the opportunity were to present itself, they would be thrilled to take 10 pt from concept to reality.
Casha Doemland
LA-based and Georgia-bred, Casha Doemland spends her days crafting poetry and freelance writing. Over the last two years, she’s been published in a variety of publications and zines around the world. When she’s not nerding out with words, you can catch her watching a classic film, trekking around the globe or hanging out with a four-pound Pomeranian.
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