Recovery · Environment · Green jobs
Eco-Street
Turning street plastic into cleaner neighbourhoods, dignified work and hope — one weekly collection at a time.
A Tek Ura green-jobs pilot · TiranaWhat it is
Recycling that lifts people, not just litter
Eco-Street began with an invitation from the British Embassy in Tirana. Along the city's "Embassy Street", Tek Ura recruits, trains, equips and supervises someone facing real hardship to collect plastic bottles and aluminium cans each week from the embassies. The materials are carried to a buy-back centre and kept out of landfill.
It is a bridge between two needs that usually sit apart. A cleaner, greener Tirana on one side; on the other, structured work, new skills, social connection and a modest income for a person the city too often overlooks. Care for creation and care for people, in the same simple act.
“Nearly 400 kg of plastic and cans were diverted from landfill, delivering a meaningful environmental impact — while the project provided weekly structured work, social engagement and skill-building.”
How it works
A weekly rhythm along Embassy Street
Collect
Every week since May 2025, recyclables are gathered from six embassies on Embassy Street — the Czech, Slovenian, Slovak, British, Chinese and Bulgarian missions.
Recover
Plastic bottles and aluminium cans are sorted and taken to a buy-back centre — diverted from landfill and given a second life instead of choking the streets.
Change a life
One participant facing hardship gains dependable weekly work, new skills, social connection and a first step towards more stable employment.
The pilot so far
Real results, May–December 2025
Honest note: the recyclables earn less than the collection costs, so the pilot currently runs at a small loss. Environmentally and personally it clearly works — which is exactly why we want to grow it into something sustainable.
Our next step
Eco-Bridge Tirana: recycling for green jobs and inclusion
We have applied to the Slovak Embassy's SlovakAid Small Grants 2026 to scale the pilot into a genuinely sustainable green micro-enterprise. If supported, over twelve months it would:
- Equip a sorting-and-baling station so far more value can be recovered from every kilo collected.
- Expand the route beyond the embassies to local businesses and households.
- Provide green skills, work-readiness training and a route to stable employment for at least six vulnerable adults — a deliberate majority of them women facing hardship.
- Keep even more plastic and aluminium out of Tirana's landfill and waterways.
The grant decision is still pending — but the vision is clear, and the pilot has already shown it can work.
“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”
Help Eco-Street grow
Your support can turn a promising pilot into lasting green jobs — cleaner streets, and dignified work for people who need a fresh start. Give, pray, or partner with us.