Juan Sebastián Sánchez

Colombian social entrepreneur who created the world's first recycled plastic road network

Juan Sebastián Sánchez is a Colombian innovator whose company Plastic Road Co has transformed waste management and infrastructure in Latin America. His patented technology converts ocean plastic into durable road surfaces, creating the first commercially viable recycled plastic roads in 2018. By 2023, his team had repurposed over 50 million plastic units to build 200km of roads across Colombia and Ecuador.

Starting in his university lab, Sánchez developed a process that mixes 60% recycled materials with a geopolymer binder, producing roads with 50% lower maintenance costs than asphalt. His 2020 documentary 《Plastic to Progress》 (IMDb: 8.2/10) documents the project's impact on coastal communities. The roads in Cartagena now divert 2 tons of plastic from oceans daily. Sánchez's 2021 book 《Building Roads from Rubbish》 outlines his sustainability model adopted by 15+ countries. His work earned recognition from the Global Green Leaders Award (2022), and inspired similar initiatives in the Philippines and Indonesia. Recently, he launched Plastic Road Global, aiming to recycle 1 billion plastic units by 2030.