This year’s TEDx Accra has showcased how discarded clothing from the Kantamanto Market can be transformed into functional and attractive materials for events, highlighting locally driven circular solutions to waste management.
The initiative was spearheaded by TEDx Accra organisers Jesse Gyau Kusi and Klenam Fiadzoe in partnership with The Or Foundation, an Accra-based non-profit organisation working with the Kantamanto Market ecosystem.
The collaboration saw discarded clothing transformed into the event’s stage letters and rug, while denim waste from Kantamanto was upcycled into limited-edition tote bags.
The Or Foundation also deployed its recycled public address system, comprising colourful speakers made from recycled textile waste.
Katia Osei, Head of Environmental Justice at The Or Foundation, took the stage against letters produced from recycled Kantamanto clothing waste, with the rug beneath her also made from discarded garments.
The red “TEDx” stage letters were produced at The Or Foundation’s Material Technology and Transformation Lab (MTTL) at Old Fadama using Cassaboard, a recycled biocomposite developed from post-consumer clothing waste recovered from Kantamanto and cassava-based binders.
The material is designed to be durable, mould and fire-resistant, and offers sound absorption properties, with potential applications in interior panels, furniture and other acoustic products.
The stage letters alone represent about 20 kilogrammes of single-use T-shirts that would otherwise have remained unsold or become waste.
The event rug was made from Tarnty, a circular yarn developed by The Or Foundation from discarded T-shirts, identified as one of the most common categories of unsold garments in Kantamanto.
Each ball of Tarnty is made from one T-shirt and can be used for knitting, crochet, weaving and other crafts.
The Or Foundation said the production process demonstrated the potential of local circular manufacturing, with the technology used to manufacture Cassaboard designed and built in Ghana, primarily from recycled metal and electronic waste.
The collaboration also introduced a circular approach to event merchandise, with limited-edition TEDx Accra tote bags produced from denim waste sourced from Kantamanto.
Proceeds from the bags support The Or Foundation’s Secondhand Solidarity Fund, which provides debt relief to retailers burdened by unsellable bales, as well as emergency support, including assistance for fire victims and healthcare needs.
The organisers said events such as concerts, fashion shows, conferences and product launches often generated considerable waste through temporary installations, branded merchandise and materials designed for single-use.
They therefore sought to demonstrate an alternative model in which event infrastructure was designed with its next use in mind.
Mr Fiadzoe said bringing a piece of Kantamanto onto the TEDx Accra stage was intended to demonstrate the possibilities of waste transformation and promote circular design.
“Bringing a piece of Kantamanto onto the TEDx Accra stage was our way of highlighting the work by The Or Foundation, showing physical evidence of what’s possible, proving that waste is simply a resource waiting for imagination, and that circular design should be our industrial standard,” he said.
Kennie MacCarthy, Assistant Manager of MTTL, said the project challenged conventional perceptions of waste as worthless material.
“Waste immediately inspires a messy, ugly visual that MTTL is successfully debunking with its work. To us, this is an example of transforming what is usually dismissed as worthless rubbish into a beautiful, colourful and functional material that can be used in everyday life and settings,” she said.
She said the initiative demonstrated the possibilities of transforming discarded materials into useful products through local innovation.
The organisers said the recycled stage letters and rug would not be discarded or left in storage after the event.
Instead, TEDx Accra is working with The Or Foundation to make the recycled stage set available to TEDx events across West Africa, with future efforts expected to explore how the materials could be circulated affordably between cities and countries.
The initiative is therefore being positioned as a practical demonstration of how events can contribute to environmental sustainability, local manufacturing and the development of a circular economy.
The Or Foundation works at the intersection of education, environmental justice and fashion development to promote a justice-led circular economy grounded in community ecological care.
TEDx Accra is an independently organised TED event that brings together thinkers, innovators, artists and other change-makers to share ideas and solutions with local and global relevance.
