The surplus of single use plastic found in oceans is one of the major problems of the modern world. Whether it’s straws, takeout plastic bags, or candy wrappers – single use plastic has been a major concern. Environmental advocates have been promoting the significance of recycling plastic to lessen the negative impact of plastic pollution in our oceans. However, that may not be enough.
In recent years, artists and designers have utilized a new form of plastic recycling; using recycled plastic as sustainable design. This means reusing these plastics to create products such as furniture, home decorations, and other kinds of objects that are not just aesthetically pleasing, but also sustainable and beneficial to our environment.
Heliograf, an Australian-based duo of designers, believes in making positive environmental changes by prioritizing design for sustainability. To take a part in saving our planet’s oceans, they debuted the Light Soy Portable Lamp – a lamp made out of 75% recycled ocean-bound plastic to inspire others to care for the environment playfully and creatively.
A Soy Sauce Fish Lamp: What’s The Inspiration?
When looking at Heliograf’s product, many thoughts may surface. Why did they design it like a fish lamp with a red cap on top? The inspiration for this product stems from tiny soy sauce fish packets from Japan called shoyu-tai (soy-sauce snapper) – invented in the 1950’s to replace glass and ceramic bottles for containing soy sauce.
The shoyu-tai grew in popularity because of how convenient it is. Especially when it comes to packaging soy sauce, especially for takeout sushi. Use them once and dispose of the plastic packets after dispensing the soy sauce onto the food. With thousands of these tiny plastic fish packets tossed out everyday, they have become a contribution to the problem of ocean-bound plastic waste.
Because of how small these packets are, they are very difficult to recycle and hard to refill. This is why they mostly end up in landfills and oceans, polluting our oceans and negatively affecting our marine life. As much as we can refuse to use the packet, it is still being mass produced and added to sushi takeouts. However, we can still make a difference.
Introducing the Light Soy Portable Lamp
Heliograf has provided an avenue for us to raise awareness on plastic waste and support products that recycle ocean-bound plastic through their Light Soy Portable Lamp. They designed this soy sauce lamp with functionality, appeal, and sustainability in mind.
First and foremost, the Light Soy Portable Lamp functions as how a lamp should be. It has dimmable LED with touch controls, a rechargeable battery that lasts for up to 20 hours, and it features fast charging that uses a USB-C port. It’s a practical addition to your space, especially for those who are looking for a reliable lamp to brighten up their homes.
Besides its practicality, one obvious reason why the fish lamp is worth the buy. It is simply because of how cute it is! Its design embodies the actual soy sauce fish packet very accurately. Therefore, it makes sense why the lamp is an award-winning design. This soy sauce fish lamp has captured the hearts of many Japanese enthusiasts, resembling a small piece of Japan’s food culture.
Along with its functionality and appeal, the advocacy behind the design object is what makes the lamp a valuable product. They made the Light Soy lamp from recycled materials to educate and raise awareness about the negative impact of single-use plastic. Plus, for every lamp sold, a part of the funds pays for 2kg of ocean-bound plastic cleanup.
Overall, it’s clear that this beautiful soy sauce fish lamp represents how creativity can meet sustainability and produce design objects that benefit not just the people, but the planet too. It’s a great example of ‘green technology,’ using the power of technology and innovation to reduce human impacts on the environment.
The People Behind The Product
The makers of the lamp, Angus Ware and Jeffrey Simpson, decided to design and create the soy sauce lamp because of their first-hand experience of seeing plastic in the ocean. Living on the coasts of Australia, Angus and Jeffrey witnessed how ocean-bound plastic can ruin marine ecosystems, create microplastics, and pollute our bodies by dirtying our oceans.
Seeing the negative impact of the soy sauce fish packets, they committed to four years of design and development to create the Light Soy Lamp. Their process involves five steps;
- Collecting – They collect and gather plastic waste from regions with high amounts of ocean-bound plastic pollution.
- Sorting and Cleaning – They sort and clean the collected plastic waste for the next steps of the production process.
- Recycling – Certified recycling organizations help recycle the plastic waste into usable and valuable materials.
- Upcycling – They mold the recyclable material into the design of the lamp and put it into sustainable packaging, ready for purchase.
- Loving and Reusing – Customers purchase and love the product, hoping to encourage environmental awareness and conservation.
- Supporting – The purchased products support the company’s production process of the lamps, as well as fund programs that implement cleanups in areas with the most ocean-bound plastic.
They designed it with their advocacy in mind, highlighting the importance of environmental footprint and the 3 R’s – rethink, reuse, and recycle.
By creating ‘playful and inspiring objects with sustainable design at heart. Heliograf aims to continue producing the Light Soy Portable Lamp as a constant (and cute!). It is a reminder for everyone to take part in conserving our planet’s oceans by reducing plastic waste.
A Call to Action by the Light Soy Portable Lamp
As we continue to overcome the challenges of plastic waste and pollution, we must remain proactive. Take action to find alternative solutions in combating this universal problem. From stopping plastic use to recycling, Heliograf believes it is time to redesign waste into designs. Such that not only spark joy, but never become waste again.
Ready to make a difference? Love the planet and reduce plastic waste with the Light Soy Portable Lamp! You can support Heliograf and the environment by purchasing the lamp here or at Japan Nakama.
