Students with Disabilities turn waste into opportunity

Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago – 17 April 2026 – For the students of the New Beginnings Educational Centre in Diego Martin, discarded plastic bottles and fabric scraps are no longer waste, but raw material for opportunity.

On April 14, 2026, the Centre launched ‘Innovation with a Twist’, an initiative to equip young people with learning disabilities with practical, income-generating skills. Funded through the Innovation Challenge for Persons with Disabilities, a partnership between the Digicel Foundation and the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme UNDP (GEF-SGP UNDP), the project transformed a 40-foot shipping container into an upcycling craft hub where students create marketable products from discarded materials.

For many persons with disabilities, access to sustainable employment remains limited. This initiative addresses that gap by building practical skills in craft production, packaging, and branding, while also strengthening confidence, independence, and self-worth. The New Beginnings Students are not only learning, but producing items that can be sold and valued.

Beyond funding, Digicel Foundation and GEF-SGP UNDP have also invested in business mentorship for Innovation Challenge partners. Over five months, Digicel Head of Customer Operations Jevorn Scott provided hands-on mentoring for this project, noting, “The project and its overall goals mirrored the organisational and personal values within which I operate, making it easy to give of my time and support.”

With over 40 years of experience, the New Beginnings Educational Centre continues to provide a safe, innovative environment focused on improving long-term outcomes for its students. Principal Phillis Griffith shared, “We’re always seeking to create as many opportunities as possible for our students’ creative expression and overall development. Digicel Foundation and GEF-SGP have made another one of those opportunities possible, and we’re thankful.”

Dr. Sharda Mahabir, National Coordinator of GEF-SGP UNDP Trinidad and Tobago, added: “What I’m seeing here is evidence that the Innovation Challenge achieved its goal; to provide opportunities solely for persons with disabilities and the organisations that support them.”

As training continues and partnerships with community stakeholders expand, students will have more opportunities to bring their products to market, turning skills into income and supporting greater independence.