Environment and economy are two sides of the same coin. If we cannot sustain our environment, we cannot sustain ourselves. Reduce, Recycle, Recover is the new mantra. Did you know? out of 4.7 million tonnes of garbage which is generated daily at a global level, India contributes 1.4 million tonnes of waste in it. Ever wondered how one could turn waste management into entrepreneurship? Ashutosh Srivastava is one such entrepreneur who is trying to address this problem in an unique way. What if you could get a recharge for your phone, free pizza, or shop online by dumping a plastic bottle or a can into a vending machine? Yes, it is possible. Ashutosh along with his team of innovators from Delhi are making it possible through their initiative called ‘WeConvert’. It is a concept where you can insert a plastic bottle/aluminium cans or glass scraps into technologically smart e-collectors and get cool rewards ranging from a free burger to online shopping vouchers. This concept will also give you a satisfaction of doing your bit for the environment.
In conversation with Ashutosh Srivastava :
1) Tell us about yourself and your background ?
I am Ashutosh Srivastava, working with a waste management tech based start-up called ‘WeConvert’. I have done Engineering in Electronics and Instrumentation field from Bhaskaracharya College of Applied Sciences (Delhi University) Pranav Manocha, me and our team of five people from Delhi took the idea of recycling very seriously and thus ‘WeConvert’ was born. I currently manage tech leads, business management, talent acquisition, strategic execution and resource planning for the same.
2) Tell us about WeConvert.
It is a tech based waste management start-up focused on creating cleaner environment by using smart bins. It is an amalgamation of four talented people in the field of business and technology, founded in August 2015, when I was in fifth semester. We strongly believe that someone has to take up the mantle to improve the standard of living in the country. And we want to be the torch-bearers who bring about a technological revolution that allows us to reach the goals which are shared by one and all. We-Convert provides a customer oriented service by automating the process of waste collection and segregation. Also the user is rewarded with credits (rewards) when he chooses to use our SmartBins for the disposal process. With its proprietary technology and a unique approach, we aim to cover every segment for effective and efficient waste disposal.
3) Who all form the team of ‘WeConvert’?
Myself ( Co-Founder & CEO )–With over 7 years of combined experience working with different tech startups and hardware Technologies, I’m leading the We-Convert team since it’s inception. Parth Dave ( Co-Founder and COO )– A visionary with a philanthropic side and amazing analytical skills. An engineer but with a blend of enthusiasm who is also a smart worker, disciplined and dedicated. Ashish Sharma ( CTO )-An inherently curious person, enabling him to keep on learning new coding techniques & effectively applying them to solve problems. Shweta Singh (Advisor and Mentor)- She is the founder and Director at Enobble IP, Piple and STEPUP 360. She is actively involved in supporting startups and business ventures. All of us together run WeConvert.
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4) Where do you think there is a lag in the current system?
We realized that waste is completely monitored by unskilled workforce to segregate recyclables from a huge pile of garbage. Despite government’s best initiative the system needs to be improved for better productivity. This is the major lag in the current system and we are trying our level best to change it.
5) What is the ‘Smart bin technology’? Give us an outline of its working.
Metro stations, corporate offices, malls use our patented smart bin technology to sort any type of waste. You just have to throw the waste into smart bins and press the start button located on the smart bin and with the help of machine learning program and image processing techniques dual cameras installed within the bins will capture and identify the type of waste and will segregate them accordingly.
6) What was the inspiration behind starting this?
Me and my associate Parth were working with an NGO which faced two main challenges, collection and segregation of waste. The workforce was working under unhygienic conditions to manually segregate the recyclables. We brainstormed for many tech based solutions, finally after two months we settled with smart bins.
7) Would you mind giving a piece of advice to the aspiring entrepreneurs?
If you decide don’t deviate from your goals. Start early and don’t think too much. Entrepreneurship is all about doing stuff. So get up, pick up your bags and start today. Don’t think about the outcomes. Things will always vary and you should never give up because of few temporary challenges.
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