Children in Nairobi’s Kibera informal settlement are learning chess using sets made from recycled plastic waste, combining access to educational activities with efforts to reduce environmental pollution.
Community project Kijiji Solutions has recycled about 200 kilograms of plastic to produce nearly 2,000 chess sets in partnership with The Gift of Chess, an organisation that distributes chess equipment to communities with limited access to the game. The sets are being used by children at schools including Centre of Hope School in Kibera.
Kijiji Solutions collects and sorts plastic waste before sending suitable materials for processing into polypropylene pellets. The pellets are then melted and shaped into chess pieces using specially made moulds at the organisation’s workshop in Nairobi.
Founder Richard Haukom said the process gives discarded plastic a new use while creating affordable equipment for schools and community chess programmes. He acknowledged, however, that the amount of waste used so far represents a modest contribution to addressing the wider plastic pollution problem.
At Centre of Hope School, pupils regularly practise with the recycled sets. Teachers say chess encourages concentration, strategic thinking and problem solving, while giving children opportunities to compete regardless of their economic background.
Chess teacher Ian Ombati said the game allows children to be judged by their skills and ability rather than where they come from.
Eleven year old pupil Esther Mutua said regular practice helped her improve her chess skills and mathematics performance. Nine year old Markham Odhiambo also said playing chess had helped him concentrate in class and work through mathematics questions.
The school’s leaders have incorporated chess into learning activities, although the reported improvements in academic performance have not been independently established. Research has found some association between chess participation and academic outcomes, but whether chess itself directly causes those improvements remains debated.
The project brings together waste collection, local manufacturing and educational access. By sourcing discarded plastic from Kibera, Kijiji Solutions also works with community waste collectors and supports local production.
The Gift of Chess helps distribute the finished sets to children and community programmes that might otherwise struggle to obtain equipment. Earlier reporting on the partnership has documented distribution to schools, youth groups, prisons and refugee communities.
The initiative’s wider value lies in connecting environmental action with opportunities for children to learn and participate in organised activities. While its current contribution to plastic waste reduction remains limited in scale, expanding production and distribution could extend access to chess while creating further opportunities for community based manufacturing.
For children in Kibera, the recycled sets provide more than playing equipment. They offer a practical way to learn strategy, practise decision making and take part in a game where performance depends on the moves made on the board.
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