SriLankan Airlines wins Best Aviation Sustainability Programme Award for its innovative upcycling of aircraft discards

SriLankan Airlines beat 118 other submissions to win the Best Aviation Sustainability Programme Award at the recent Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum (SMBR) Global Aviation Awards.The final selection was made by an independent panel represented by the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation; The General Civil Aviation Authority in the United Arab Emirates; and Airbus.

SriLankan Airlines has been binning waste material such as unusable aircraft seat covers; blankets; uniforms and other items originating from the aircraft and process of flying to the tune of 16 tons, each year. Before the launch of Mathaka the upcycle project, this waste would eventually end up in landfill costing the airline millions in expenses on disposal, and the environment significantly more in pollution. Through Mathaka, SriLankan is able to avert discarded material from going to landfill and minimize the consequential long-term negative impact on the environment. Mathaka facilitates waste material to be upcycled to something new. Effective waste management from upcycling further offers a practical solution in this age of economic scarcity and shortage of raw materials by extending the use of waste material in a sustainable manner.

SriLankan Airlines partnered with House of Lonali to bring Project Mathaka to life. House of Lonali is a local, conscious lifestyle brand that designs, and manufactures upcycled lifestyle products. Jointly, an exclusive range of products and accessories will be developed under the ‘Mathaka’ brand including travel bags; wallets; books; key tags; photo frames; and jewellery – all assembled from aircraft discards.

Mathaka products will be introduced for sale onboard SriLankan Airlines’ flights and through the website and retail partners of House of Lonali. Customers who buy Mathaka products can take satisfaction from knowing that they are not just being environmentally conscious, but the money they have invested will entirely go toward funding other sustainability initiatives of the airline. There is a strong humanitarian aspect to Mathaka as well. SriLankan Airlines will be empowering women from low-income communities to earn a livelihood and support their families through House of Lonali. The organization provides employment opportunities to disadvantaged women both directly and by working with non-profit foundations, namely Women in Need (WIN) that advocate for women’s causes. Women engaged with the production process of Project Mathaka by House of Lonali, directly or via WIN, can now present their talent to a global travel audience and make a living at the same time.

Project Mathaka is one of several initiatives taken by the Environmental Affairs and Sustainability team of the airline towards supporting the environment in measured and impactful ways. SriLankan was the first airline in Asia to introduce ‘Planet Friendly Flights’ back in 2009 and was named the second lowest carbon emitting airline in the Asia-Pacific in 2016 by Business Traveller.