The industrial engineering undergraduate program in our branch campus in Guayaquil and the “Asociación Ecuatoriana de Plásticos” (Ecuadorian Plastic Association) held a talk on "Strengthening the polystyrene and polypropylene chain in the city of Guayaquil"

 
They discussed crucial topics related to programs for environmental sustainability, waste classification and contribution to the preservation of nature through industrial processes beneficial to society and general well-being.

 
Fabiola Terán director of the industrial engineering undergraduate program, explained how this project between the community and academia emerged. "The talk is the result of a recycling chain analysis project in which students, teachers and the Association participated. The impact of this research was significant. It was stressed by the Ministry of Production and Foreign Trade recognizing the valuable contribution of former professor José Hidalgo and our students".

 
The aim of the talk was to present how to strengthen the polystyrene and polypropylene recycling chain, therefore a strategy has been planned that involves all stakeholders in the chain. The purpose of the strategy is to evaluate the progress of its implementation, open spaces for dialogue to understand the impact of the actions in each part of the chain, identify critical areas and propose improvements to reach the objectives.

Marcelo Samaniego, a student, said “it was very beneficial because we learned about the environmental impact that plastic is having on the city and therefore create strategies to decrease the damage we are causing”.