When you toss a TOUCH rugby ball, you're doing more than passing a ball -- you're passing on an opportunity for employment while also being kind to the environment. The social enterprise was started by Thurlow Hanson-Moore, a founder of thewinwingroup, and is sponsored by South African waste management company EnviroServ.
TOUCH is a social enterprise that is not only environmentally-friendly, but is also benefiting social good through job creation. The rugby balls are stuffed with recycled billboards, plastic bags and other waste from the communities, which are then sewn together by seamstresses in South Africa who would otherwise be out of work. The social business supplies each seamstress with the supplies and training she needs to make the TOUCH rugby balls.
"TOUCH will provide training and up-skilling to ensure that women who have been out of work are enabled to produce quality TOUCH products," their Facebook page explains. "The seamstresses are paid for each ball that they make."
Each TOUCH rugby ball sells for ZAR 50 (about $6), of which ZAR 30 goes back to the community and the operating costs of NGO "LIVE." Whats Up Capetown says that once the women have mastered the craft, they can earn up to 200 ZAR a day, which is about $25.
Contact Information
The TOUCH Initiative Website
072 288 9088
Upcycled Rugby Balls
The TOUCH Initiative Recycles Garbage while Creating Jobs
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