Plastics’ overall awesomeness is being brought to the fore by a foundation in Assam / India. Now in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Akshar Foundation has devised a scheme that allows low-income families to use single-use plastic in lieu of money to pay for private schooling.

Besides giving children a shot at a decent education, the foundation converts the waste plastic into bricks, thus promoting recycling. The scheme has become such a hit that government schools all over the country are talking about replicating it. In fact, Akshar recently signed an agreement with the Assam government to implement the “Akshar Education Model” in five government schools. A waste-plastic conversion firm from the Netherlands also expressed interest in the foundation’s initiative and is now looking to set up plastics laboratories in schools offering the scheme.

Be it in India or anywhere else in the world, education in return for waste plastics sounds like a pretty sweet deal!