Zero Co raises $260,000 for global plastic cleanup efforts after its Egyptian rubbish pyramid stunt

Zero Co says its decision to construct and occupy a pyramid made of plastic waste in the middle of a desert has raised more than $260,000 for global cleanup efforts, with founder Mike Smith hoping to capture the world’s attention during the COP27 climate conference in Egypt.

Zero Co, the scale-up providing refillable alternatives to common household goods, last week partnered with local waste removal initiative VeryNile and artist Bahia Shehab to repurpose 18,000 kilograms of waste pulled from the Nile river.

The result: a pyramid constructed from rubbish, which Smith himself camped atop for three days leading into the COP27 conference, which began on Sunday.

Zero Co plans to sort and repurpose PET waste from the pyramid, with the goal of recycling it into new plastic products.

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Beyond representing the dizzying scale of plastic waste to lawmakers and policy advocates, the pyramid stunt directed attention to Zero Co’s 1ooYR Cleanup initiative.

Under that plan, Zero Co hopes to partner with organisations across the world to remove plastic waste from the natural environment.

In the long-run, the company aims to establish full-time cleanup teams operating across Australia and south east Asia for the next 100 years.

The 100YR Cleanup plan rests on donated contributions, with supporters free to ‘sponsor’ bundles of rubbish from $20 each.

Zero Co says it has kicked $100,000 of its own profits into the endeavour, while The Hidden Sea and Skip Foundation both tipped $50,000 into the project.

Other donations mean the initiative has already raised $267,466 of its $1 million goal.

“By working together with businesses, industry leaders and inviting the public to take direct action, we’ll be able to build a scalable solution to the problem and have a huge impact,” Smith said in a statement.