What are Ecobricks?

Ecobricks are your simple solution for plastic.

An Ecobrick is a plastic bottle packed to a set density with used, clean and dry plastic to achieve a building block that can be used over and over again. Ecobricks can also be packed with other non-biological un-recyclables that, uncontained, are toxic to the environment (i.e. styrofoam, wires, small batteries, etc.). Ecobricks are used to make modular furniture, garden spaces, walls and even full-scale buildings. Ecobricks are an exciting way that individuals, communities, and companies can start their immediate transition from plastic towards ever greener harmony with the Earth’s cycles.

Ecobricks are a stepping stone out of the old paradigm of ‘waste’ and ‘trash’. Ecobricking gives value to what was once value-less. Ecobricks are designed to leverage the longevity and durability of plastic, to create an indefinitely reusable, cradle to cradle, building block. They are made by cleaning, drying and then packing plastic into a PET drinking bottle. This enables plastic to be kept out of the environment, and out of the ineffective industrial recycling system. Once packed solid (with a minimum density of 0.33g/ml) ecobricks can be used to build green spaces for our community, furniture for our homes, and many other practical applications.

This site and our Ecobrick Guides have been crafted to help you get started ecobricking, to assist the training others to ecobrick, and to establish best practices for the making and application of ecobricks. Our goal is to empower you and your community with the know-how to make ecobricks and build with them. Our GEA resources are the result of years of research, experimentation and trial and error around the world through the Global Ecobrick Alliance.