HyaPak
134 posts
HyaPak
@HyapakEco
A Kenyan based startup that's transforming water hyacinth (world's most problematic aquatic weed) into biodegradable alternatives to single-use plastics 💚
Kenya Katılım Ağustos 2022
244 Takip Edilen305 Takipçiler
HyaPak retweetledi
@_nguthiru is part of a generation of #Futuremakers turning innovation into opportunity — and proving that when young Africans have the right investments, they don’t just succeed. They transform the future.
We believe sustained progress happens when innovation is matched with visibility, fair policies, and the right partnerships. That’s why we must continue to spotlight our Futuremakers — and back them with policies and partnerships that match their ambition.
Reply and tag a Futuremaker you know below. 👇🏽
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HyaPak retweetledi
HyaPak turns invasive water hyacinth from Kenyan lakes like Naivasha into 100% biodegradable packaging that replaces single-use plastics. Their seedling wrappers decompose in 6 months, boost growth by 10%, retain 20% more water, and offset 1.6 kg CO2 each—while clearing weeds and creating jobs. Circular economy win: one problem solves another! 💚 Check hyapak.com for more.
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This was the turning point for HyaPak.
Highly recommending you all to apply
@UNEP
UN Environment Programme@UNEP
Are you a young innovator aged 18–30 with an idea for the planet? 🌍 UNEP’s #YoungChamps programme awards young entrepreneurs with public recognition, money allocation, training, mentorship, and the opportunity to pitch for financial backing. Take your idea to the global stage! Apply before 31 March. unep.org/youngchampions…
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@HyapakEco @polo_kimanii Will you mind visitors or someone to help you create awareness?
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Hey @polo_kimanii
You'd be interested to see what we're doing at HyaPak
We convert that water hyacinth weed into biodegradable packaging materials to replace single-use plastics, like the type of plastic bags that NEMA banned
We work with the community in Lake Naivasha actually
MethoDman@polo_kimanii
My Biggest problem with kenyan education is it lacks the element of innovation. It only teaches employment,everyone is studying to be employed. All those Bio chemists and Agronomist graduates we have in kenya,but none of you can actually come up with a simple solution for such? This is Lake Naivasha. This water hyacinth can easily be converted to fertilizer,or proper animal feed or even make ropes. You are there waiting for D students to think for you,so that you can complain how A students are being employed by D students.
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@itsdream_b @polo_kimanii True, but the education system also helps.
Our work at HyaPak, to solve water hyacinth, started off from a final year project at Egerton University @egertonunikenya, and has so far been great catapulted by educational agencies in the country such as @nacosti & @KENIAupdates
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@polo_kimanii The issue isn’t intelligence.
It’s incentives.
Our education system rewards passing exams, not solving local problems.
Innovation grows where curiosity and experimentation are encouraged.
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My Biggest problem with kenyan education is it lacks the element of innovation. It only teaches employment,everyone is studying to be employed.
All those Bio chemists and Agronomist graduates we have in kenya,but none of you can actually come up with a simple solution for such?
This is Lake Naivasha. This water hyacinth can easily be converted to fertilizer,or proper animal feed
or even make ropes.
You are there waiting for D students to think for you,so that you can complain how A students are being employed by D students.
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@Kipyego89725960 @polo_kimanii We actually started off HyaPak as a final year engineering project in the university & grew into a startup
Now we're converting that water hyacinth weed into biodegradable packaging materials to replace single use plastics 🪻💚
One of our funding partners was @KENIAupdates
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@polo_kimanii There are working ideas but to get funding, ethical approval, research benches to conduct such research is an up-hill task.
Visit any graduate school sections in a nearby University and see for yourself.
Theses with very brilliant ideas are gathering dust there.
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@Komboray @polo_kimanii True. Water hyacinth is actually an indicator of water pollution
And also, the plant actually floats on water and is swayed by water currents and waves that are pushed by the wind
As long as wind doesn't blow towards the Ugandan side of lake Victoria, hyacinth won't move there
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@polo_kimanii You see, this is the same Lake Victoria, but on the Ugandan side. Zero to very little Hyacinth. The reason, water Hyacinthe's main activity is to clean the lake of any pollutants. So basically we're continuously polluting the lake thus the proliferation of the plant
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@It_swakab @polo_kimanii Our work with hyacinth actually started as our final year project in university, before spinning off and growing into a startup, HyaPak.
We were stuck right there at Lake Naivasha during a class trip
Now we use that same hyacinth to create green jobs for the local community 🪻
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@ChegeVic_254 @polo_kimanii @kiela_w We extract cellulose content from the plant fiber materials
One of our biggest applications for HyaPak are tree seedling potting bags 🌱
They're planted together with seedlings into the soil
Nutrients from water hyacinth act as 'organic fertilizer' & accelerate tree growth rates
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@HyapakEco @polo_kimanii @kiela_w How are you dealing with the heavy metals? How are you removing them from the media?
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@HyapakEco @polo_kimanii At HyaPak, you're transforming invasive water hyacinth from Lake Naivasha into biodegradable alternatives to single-use plastics, like bags and packaging. This clears the lake, reduces waste, and creates jobs—proving innovation can solve real problems. Keep it up!
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@ChegeVic_254 @polo_kimanii @kiela_w We're doing work on it actually at HyaPak 💚
We convert it into biodegradable packaging materials
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@polo_kimanii @kiela_w Hakuna gold hapo kimani. Water hyacinth has very little dry matter, like 10%. It's also full of heavy metals. Those heavy metals will end up in consumers and destroy their livers kidneys and brains.
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HyaPak is on a mission to revolutionize packaging by converting water hyacinth, an invasive weed, into biodegradable alternatives to single-use plastic products. Essentially, we are using one environmental problem to solve another. url-shortener.me/9CHW
@victorhenu @_nguthiru
MethoDman@polo_kimanii
My Biggest problem with kenyan education is it lacks the element of innovation. It only teaches employment,everyone is studying to be employed. All those Bio chemists and Agronomist graduates we have in kenya,but none of you can actually come up with a simple solution for such? This is Lake Naivasha. This water hyacinth can easily be converted to fertilizer,or proper animal feed or even make ropes. You are there waiting for D students to think for you,so that you can complain how A students are being employed by D students.
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@polo_kimanii Hey @polo_kimanii
You'd be interested to see what we're doing at HyaPak
We convert that water hyacinth weed into biodegradable packaging materials to replace single-use plastics, like the type of plastic bags that NEMA banned
We work with the community in Lake Naivasha actually
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We're glad to have HyaPak as part of the World's first ever conference on water hyacinth, HyaCon 1.0, in @jain_kochi 🇮🇳 as a flagship initiative of @MissionKer73624
Proud to contribute & shape the world's approach to water hyacinth management & invasive species value addition
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HyaPak retweetledi
3 minutes. 15 slides. One shot.
Pitched @HyapakEco at @AFRICARENA in Cape Town during Katapult Demo Day. Fast, focused, and all about clarity, not slides.
The real win? Sharp questions and strong follow-ups from investors and partners.
Grateful to @_nguthiru for the trust. 🚀🇰🇪
Cape Town, South Africa 🇿🇦 English