Plastic-free Spaces

The Ismaili community is striving to become a leader in the move to replace the use of single-use plastics in Canada. 

As part of a proposed country-wide ban, Canada will aim to discontinue the use of single-use plastics as early as 2021, along with many other countries that have already imposed the restriction. According to the Canadian government, Canadians use up to 15 billion plastic bags each year, contributing to over 3 million tonnes of plastic waste annually.

To do their part, the British Columbia Jamat created the “Pause on Plastics” initiative that aims to eliminate the use of single-use plastic bags in nandi ceremonies in all Jamatkhanas. Between October 2019 and February 2020, the initiative prevented the use of more than 19,000 plastic bags.

“We knew it wasn’t a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’ Vancouver would go plastic bag-free. We wanted to get ahead of that game,” said Farah Surani,  director for marketing and communications for B.C.’s IVC at the time.  

Surani spearheaded the initiative in January 2019, along with Naila Alibhai, former member for IVC and communications on the Aga Khan Council for B.C.; Imran Jiwa, former Downtown Jamatkhana IVC captain; and Faraz Manji, former IVC associate director for marketing and communications.

Planning began in August 2019. The sale of reusable bags was initially tested at Downtown and Fraser Valley Jamatkhanas to see how the Jamat would respond, and was then  expanded to all Jamatkhanas in Greater Vancouver,  Surani explained. Prior to Jamatkhanas closing for the COVID-19 pandemic, the team was distributing two types of reusable bags and members of the Jamat were encouraged to bring reusable bags from home. 

Zakiah Kassam, member for the environment on the Aga Khan Council for Canada, says that with the success and learnings from Vancouver, her team plans to implement the elimination of plastic bags in Jamatkhanas across the country. They had intended to implement a nation-wide initiative by the end of the year, but are re-assessing that plan because of COVID-19. 

Kassam, who was appointed for a three-year term last year, is the first person to head the newly created environment portfolio on the National Council. She is focused on assessing all Jamati infrastructure for environmental sustainability based on global standards with an emphasis on greenhouse gases. Her team intends to use the data to develop other initiatives that improve the sustainability of Jamati operations. 

Other efforts are already underway. The Bait-ul-Ilm system in the Prairies has been working on introducing sustainable practices since 2018. BUI classes across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta have all switched to recyclables and compostable materials for all snacks, explained Asif Kanji, Primary School Administrator for the Prairies. 

“This is an important initiative for us as it sends the message to the children that we do care about the future,” said Kanji. “What better way to introduce this message than to have those that are our future leading the way with our initiative?” 

A shorter version of this article originally appeared in the Summer 2020 issue of The Ismaili Canada.