Millennials and Z generations will condition company strategies by the simple fact of choosing which company to buy from

We meet André Vanyi-Robin, CEO and Founder of Nozama.green a SaaS software platform that provides tracking of CO2 savings and kilograms of packaging recovered in a complete suite of data driven tools that allow for sustainability marketing that is transparent and verifiable.

Tell us about your background, interests and how they led you to Nozama.green?

I am a dynamic entrepreneur with more than 25 years in the information technology and venture capital industry. I have extensive experience in building, growing and supporting start-ups from founding to exit on the Nasdaq (US) and on the AIM (UK) whilst pursuing my passion related to Space. I have an extensive track record in technology development, business modeling, company creation, sales and growth having implemented business plans in Europe, North Africa, Latin America and the United States. I am also the author of the Spanish language book: “He fracasado y qué?” and the co-inventor of a US Patent on Time Shifted television.

Tell us about Nozama.green. What have you set up to achieve?

Nozama was founded back in early 2019 with the objective to become the world’s largest sustainability technology company, and that goal remains more true than ever. Our history began in tracking kg of CO2 emitted, saved, and offsetted, into meaningful marketing tools for our customers. This in turn allowed customers to demonstrate their commitment to the environment, and build incentivization programs based on individual CO2 footprints. Nozama’s prior experience in sustainability technology has prepared us for another industry to revolutionize: Plastic waste.

Nozama has developed the Plastiks platform, a marketplace utilizing a smart contract approach to merge two multibillion-dollar industries: NFTs and Recycling. The Plastiks platform allows recyclers to mint and sells NFTs as recycling guarantees so that recyclers can monetize their recycling data. Producers of single-use plastic can increase the traceability of their single-use packaging. The Plastiks platform will not only allow Single-use packaging brands to demonstrate their commitment to the environment by offsetting their waste, but it allows them to comply with the recently imposed EU single-use packaging tracking regulation. As for recyclers, it’ll be an additional stream of revenue. Plastiks is a place where artists, recyclers, and single-use packaging companies can work as a team to make the world cleaner. Our vision is that all plastic in the world has to be accounted for.

Plastiks has raised $2.1 million dollars in two months and has been listed on two centralized exchanges. The MVP was deployed on time as per the roadmap on February 1, 2022 and more than 20 waste management companies have signed up to create their NFTS.

Plastiks is a place where artists, recyclers, and single use packaging companies can work as a team to make the world cleaner.

What’s been the driving force behind your company’s mission and the role of regulation, technology and societal trends and expectations in it?

Plastic waste is everywhere and in everything, found in the deepest ocean trench, to the highest mountain tops. And partially to blame for this issue is the lack of traceability and accountability within the supply chain of single-use plastics. The data speaks for itself. In terms of polypropylene, 56 million tons is being produced every year, and only 3% of it is being recovered and recycled. The rest ends up in landfills or finds a home in the world’s oceans, rivers, and lands where it’ll take centuries to biodegrade. This information is spread through the network and the millennial and Z generations are very aware and attentive. They want to do something to change. They know that their power is in their decision to buy and in their consumption habits. They are not entrenched in rigid trends by decades of custom and marketing exposure. It is also a must to know that these generations embrace Crypto. It has been used by 31% of people aged 18 to 29, compared to 21% of people aged 30 to 49, 8% of people aged 50 to 64, and 3% of people aged 65 or over.

So how can we improve the plastic economy? How can we incentivize others to be accountable for their waste? Transparency of the management of its environmental impact is the key driver behind Nozama and Plastiks.

Millennials and Z generations will condition company strategies by the simple fact of choosing which company to buy from. This election is based and will be based on whether the company is committed to the environment and how it is committed and if it can demonstrate it. Greenwashing is not enough.

In 2019, when McDonald’s introduced paper canes to replace plastic ones, they turned out not to be recyclable. Aside from the questionable practice of cutting down trees to make disposable straws, this was a classic example of a corporate giant pretending to tackle a problem, in this case, plastic pollution, without actually doing anything.

What kind of transparency do we need as informed citizens making their own decisions?

We take a very normal case of a very common person, we are billions on this planet. We wake up in the morning hearing the news. They expose us to all the bad news because they sell and because there is. After the morning routines we go out to the street to our work with the desire to contribute to changing the world because it is sorely needed. At noon, we begin to feel the stress not of the world but of our world. Work, bills, family, etc… At the end of the day, tired, we return home where there are reminders that there are bills to pay, electricity, gas, internet, the children’s school. We prepare dinner and collect. Garbage and recycling needs to go down. Approaching the containers, we begin to think which is which and the separation work carried out methodically at home for days must now fit the moment. But is it worth it? How do we know that it is really being recycled? How do you know that it does not end up in a landfill or in the sea? How do we know if it’s worth it? We quickly throw it away and go home. This is why we need radical transparency, to motivate normal people to do the right thing.

Gaming, art, crypto, and NFTs are converging. How can this flow back into improving society and our environment?

An example of how this can flow back into improving society and our environment is precisely the Plastiks platform which is a blockchain powered marketplace to enable producers of plastic to account for all plastic recovery and recycling and bridge the gap with data regarding their plastic production and connecting Single Use Packaging Producers, Waste Recovery and Recycling Companies and Consumers. The EU has adopted the ‘Directive on Single-Use Plastics’, in force as of 3 July 2021, which states: ‘Where sustainable alternatives are easily available and affordable, single-use plastic products cannot be placed on the markets of EU Member States”. It also included waste management and clean-up obligations for producers as extended producer responsibility.

Blockchain tech has come a long way from being on the fringes, evangelized only by a vocal minority.

What potential do NFTs have to further the common good and what’s the role of Nozama in this?

NFTs can enable transparency in an industry that is very opaque. Similarly, NFTs can enable impact in terms of providing an extra revenue stream to Waste Management companies that in turn can share these new revenues with the waste pickers in developing countries so that more waste can be picked and more income can be earned.

As far as Plastiks is concerned, we are gaining traction with artists who are committed to climate action. We are tuning in to creative minds with a commitment to raising environmental awareness through their art and encourage society to act. NFTs are a new way for artists to make money from their art. Artists can also choose to add a charitable endeavour to donate a percentage of their sales too.

Plastiks ecosystem is a place where artists, recyclers, and single-use packaging companies can work as a team to make the world cleaner and generate new revenues streams whilst making an impact on reducing waste in the environment.

NFTs can enable transparency in an industry that is very opaque.

What are the pitfalls to unlock the Web 3.0 potential and what measures are you taking to mitigate potential problems in your community?

Blockchain tech has come a long way from being on the fringes, evangelized only by a vocal minority. During the last two years, Crypto has benefited from increased attention, entering everyday conversations among friends, family and colleagues; nevertheless it is still early in crypto.

At Plastiks, we are focusing on the regulatory push to become plastic neutral and on the benefits of blockchain-driven by NFT models. These messages are sent to consumer brands that are bound, at least in the EU, to comply with new regulation regarding plastic neutrality.

What’s next for Nozama?

PLASTIKS is joining the Celo Ecosystem.

The Celo Foundation is a non-profit organization based in the US that supports the growth and development of the open-source Celo Platform. Guided by the Celo community tenets, the Foundation contributes to education, technical research, environmental health, community engagement, and ecosystem outreach—activities that support and encourage an inclusive financial system that creates the conditions for prosperity for everyone. As a member of the Climate Collective and the Celo Foundation Plastiks will grow local communities to regenerate global ecologies.

As a member of the Climate Collective and the Celo Foundation Plastiks will grow local communities to regenerate global ecologies.

I see lots of passion and mission-driven values in web3

2 de September de 2022 No Comments

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