Walking through Kibera settlement in Nairobi, Kenya, the pollution and waste is hard to overlook. Trash flows over into the streets and piles up by the railway line. But one local artisan collective has discovered a creative way to manage the slum's waste crisis while tackling the issue of unemployment in the process. 

In 2006, Jack Nyawanga and two friends founded the Victorious Bones Crafts Group, a collective that worked to turn trash into treasure by collecting old bones, brass, horn, and wood, and transforming them into jewelry, bowls, and trinkets. 

"In Kibera alone, if you walk down to the slums you will find the biggest challenge is the waste. With the world of today, the population is growing, waste is growing, and there is a need to recycle what we have used," Nywanaga told CGTN. "If we can't recycle the waste we have used as humans, in the near future we will not find space for kids to play."

The journey to Victorious Bones began long before the organization was founded, when Nywanga took on an apprenticeship with a wood carver who taught him the craft of using bones and wood to create salad spoons and other utensils. "It was an entrepreneurship which made a difference to the lives of many," Nwanga remembered. "I found out if bones are picked from the street instead of polluting the air, and can create a source of income, it was a win-win situation for the recycler and the community members. That was an inspiration." 

"From there I developed many different ideas on this particular industry, and I decided to come up with a unique way of doing this job, which is bone recycling." Victorious Bones came into existence as a group of people working to create and market their products from Kibera. Starting with items like salad spoons and keyrings, the collective grew and so did the creations. "Today we have reached a point where we create many unique items, from interior design, jewelry and other custom made products."

And from bones and horn, Nyawanga and his fellow creatives also started working with recycled brass, discovering new and creative means to combine bone with various other recycled materials. 

The production process is not a simple one, and the collective works to provide training to young people as a means to hone the craft and create employment opportunities. A mix of both men and women from Kibera's villages are trained free of charge, with 89 people trained since 2006. 

Through this, Nyawanga aims to pass on what he learned from his apprenticeships, sharing his knowledge to the younger generations as a means to increase opportunity and employment in Kibera.  In an area with a high rate of unemployment, this has been on the top of the agenda for Victorious Bones. "The word 'Victorious' came from the word 'Victory,' bringing victory to unemployed youth," Nyawanga explains. 

And through these training, a growing number of bone recyclers have emerged in Kibera and across the country. "There is still the challenge of unemployment but the best thing is we are working towards that challenge. It makes us very proud that someone can benefit from our knowledge and our skills."