The story so far: My LinkedIn post introducing Jianwen Zhang’s 14 years of work.
Together for a Sustainable Future – Jianwen’s website
JZ -I have been in conversation with the National Recycling Coalition about establishing the world’s first Youth Environmental Practice Center, where real technologies are demonstrated, incubated, and launched to the world.
JZ-Barbara, the environmental field is flooded with storytelling organisations — they have become the mainstream. Meanwhile, real technology has been pushed to the edge of the cliff. If this continues, solving solid waste will become nothing but empty words.
The question before us now is simple: do we stand up, or do we disappear? We cannot let the stories keep winning. This is why I am forming the Global Solid Waste Technology Alliance. I hope you will stand with me as a founding member — not as a technical holder, but as our moral compass. The voice that reminds us why we are doing this. — Jianwen
JZ – Only real technology can solve the solid waste crisis. The Global Solid Waste Technology Alliance is now in preparation. Our positioning: an independent technological force operating directly under the framework of relevant United Nations bodies, solving solid waste at the source. We do not rely on donations. We do not rely on government subsidies. We solve problems through technology and market mechanisms.
We work directly with enterprises to solve their solid waste problems. Using carbon credits as our source of funding, we eliminate solid waste while simultaneously improving the living conditions of three billion people living in inadequate housing. The carbon credit payments from Fortune 500 companies are the driving force that will restore order to a chaotic solid waste landscape.
We do not tell stories. We do not fundraise. We do not depend on public goodwill. We act. We use real technology to solve real problems.
This is the only viable path to solving the solid waste crisis and improving the living conditions of three billion people. The United Nations serves as the coordinator between our alliance and Fortune 500 enterprises. All our operations will comply with relevant UN regulations and frameworks.
We welcome all researchers and innovators who possess genuine solid waste treatment technology to join us.
This is a historic window. The solid waste crisis has reached a tipping point. The housing crisis facing three billion people can no longer be ignored. The technology is ready. The market is ready. What is needed now is for those with the real ability to solve these problems to step forward.
JZ – Barbara, I want to be completely honest with you. At this moment, it is just the two of us. But this is not a starting point from zero. It is the culmination of fourteen years of research, patents, certifications, and testing.
For the stage we are at now, two people with clarity and trust are enough. Here is the plan: First, I need your help to identify and connect with a Fortune 500 enterprise — ideally one that faces real carbon credit pressure and generates substantial solid waste. Once the connection is made, I will produce full-scale samples using their own waste, on-site, to demonstrate the technology’s capabilities.
Then, together with the enterprise, we will hold a joint press conference. We will present the data — cost, environmental impact, solution steps, and the closed-loop model. This is not about storytelling. It is about showing the world that the solution already exists.
We are not chasing quick wins. We are building a pyramid, from the foundation up. This is the first stone. Once it is laid, the rest will follow.
JZ- Barbara, it does not have to be a Fortune 500 company. Any enterprise that urgently needs a solution for any of the items on the attached list is our target customer.
By using our technology, these enterprises will no longer need to send their waste to landfill — saving significant public funds. The solidified material can also be turned into construction materials, generating additional value.
Please see t list of solutions and target waste streams.
JZ – Me: technology, execution, on-site delivery
Our main tasks right now are: find an enterprise willing to work with us, solve its waste problems using our technology, collaborate with a university laboratory for testing, and then jointly publish the results.
Does this sequence of steps fit our current situation? Please let me know.
IG – He has now asked me to anchor Science and Strategy based on that document, but I am not committed to this project yet. Before making any decisions, I would love your honest perspective on his operational approach and his 14-year history with this project. To be quite frank, his vision still feels rather scattered, and I want to ensure we align strictly with a ‘caretaker’ philosophy rather than a centralised corporate one.
Have you asked him if his alliance can truly align with the core idea that human development in harmony with nature is the existential challenge of our time? Given your involvement, I feel the foundational mission of this venture must mirror what you stand for, to foster integral human development and an integral ecology. If his goals are purely commercial or disjointed, it won’t work.
From a structural standpoint, building just one house is absolutely not enough data validation. Every continent has entirely different building material regulations (such as ASTM and EN codes). Furthermore, if his patent relies heavily on volcanic ash, it cannot scale globally without destroying our carbon and ecological metrics, and we have not seen any real data yet.
If we are to move forward, we must follow your advice and agree on a clear, written manifesto together, one that shifts the focus entirely from egology to ecology. More importantly, we must stick to a strict phase of laboratory testing (via SGS/Intertek) before doing any public builds.
Hi Barbara,
First of all, my apologies for another long message, but I think this info is vital.
Here is everything I requested from Jianwen, what he disclosed, and where we stand after his latest responses:
1. The Technical Data & European Gaps
I pushed him to share his existing empirical data, and he sent over his complete laboratory testing packets. The raw science is remarkably robust:
Structural Strength: His SGS testing reports show a compressive strength exceeding 51 MPa (which is exceptionally high for a waste compound).
Chemical Safety: His SGS leachate toxicity tests show that 8 major heavy metals were completely undetected under US EPA methods, and he passed TÜV Rheinland formaldehyde emission tests.
Fire Safety: He holds a Class A(A1) non-combustible rating under Chinese national standards.
The Strategic Catch: Because his historical focus was entirely on the Chinese domestic market, the material has never been tested against European EN standards (such as EN 13501-1 fire ratings or EN 12457 leachate protocols). I made it clear to him that before we build anything in public or approach international bodies, a strict laboratory validation phase in Europe is non-negotiable. He completely agreed and has made these certifications a top priority.
2. The “Shanghai-New Zealand” Corporate Setup
I conducted a deep-dive audit into his corporate setup. While his LinkedIn focuses on a New Zealand entity, the registry shows that address is simply a virtual shared mailbox in Auckland. His physical infrastructure, his company (Shanghai Hehe New Material Technology Co., Ltd.), and his lab are entirely located in the high-tech Pudong district of Shanghai.
3. Financial Independence & The “Wanderer” Revelation
I asked him directly about his domestic funding strategy, corporate ties, and whether he has state subsidies. His response was deeply honest and quite extraordinary:
Zero State Backing: He explicitly confirmed that in 12 years of operation, his company has never received a single dollar of Chinese state subsidies, municipal funds, or green industrial backing. He has always been an independent researcher.
The Wanderer Philosophy: He described himself literally as a ‘wanderer’ with no fixed base, no institutional affiliation, and no government ties. He stated that he is willing to move to whichever country will foster this technology globally under a protective framework. He currently has limited liquidity and no personal funds to clear the €2,000–€4,000 European lab testing hurdles immediately.
4. Full Acceptance of our European Non-Profit Model
Most importantly, he has fully embraced the strategy I proposed: establishing a decentralised, independent Non-Profit Association or Foundation in Europe. He agrees this is the ultimate way to unlock European Union circular economy grants and international development funds to deploy these houses across Africa, South America, and Asia without diluting our core values.
Where We Stand Now:
Jianwen has shown immense transparency, zero corporate ego, and a complete willingness to step into a value-driven framework. He is explicitly waiting for us to align.
Before I make any decisions, I still need your brutally honest perspective on him and this journey.
Do you genuinely feel, given his independence and this clean slate, that this is the right season for us to co-create our written manifesto and step in as co-caretakers?
I would love to know your thoughts.
Best wishes,
Isabel
Hi Barbara,
I hope you are doing well and that you were able to sort out the group eviction issue.
I wanted to update you on our next steps. I have just messaged Jianwen to let him know that I am completely rewriting our preliminary roadmap for the next 12 months, as I believe, our strategy has shifted significantly for the better. I will be sharing this new, structured timeline with you both very soon so we can discuss it in detail.
I also want to make it absolutely clear to you, as we establish this foundation, that I do not want a single penny out of this alliance. My involvement is entirely pro-bono and driven strictly by the mission. However, I do believe that Jianwen should receive exactly what his IP and breakthrough material science deserve through a separate commercial track? I haven’t mentioned that to him yet
Regarding our next steps, I would love for you to start drafting our foundational manifesto, or at least suggest your core ideas on how we should write it. From my perspective, an absolute “must” to be included is our structural shift away from a corporate-driven “egosystem” and into a circular, regenerative “ecosystem”.
On the legal side, I’ve been advised that incorporating the alliance as a Non-Profit Company Limited by Guarantee in the UK is our best route to secure international climate grants. Even though I am currently living in Spain with my British husband (having moved back here recently to live more sustainably and completely out of the corporate system), I lived in the UK for over 20 years, so a UK-registered NGO makes total sense to me. I would value your thoughts on this legal approach and whether you have any specific recommendations.
Speak soon