ColaLife’s Bid to Deliver More Than Just Soda to Developing World

ColaLife is a brilliant example of the kind of special “out-of-the-box” thinking that proves it’s always possible to reinvent the wheel or in this case, make it better. We caught sight of the endeavor almost a year ago, but the project has since evolved.

Having observed that Coca-Cola’s impressive infrastructure enabled it to deliver product to nearly every corner of the world, Simon Berry noted that the process still contained inefficiencies, namely wasted space. He felt that with a bit of intelligent package design this space could be used to transport desperately needed medical supplies to developing countries through Coca-Cola’s pre-existing distribution channels.

The ColaLife about page explains:

ColaLife is a campaign to get Coca-Cola to open up its distribution channels in developing countries to save lives, especially children’s lives, by carrying much needed ’social products’ such as oral rehydration salts and high-dose vitamin A tablets. ColaLife is an independent and purely voluntary movement backed by thousands of supporters on its Facebook Group. ColaLife is not an organization.

And though Berry has been attempting to make this idea happen for over 20 years, he is only now beginning to see progress. Thanks to a grassroots effort spurred on by both traditional and social media outreach, the project is getting closer to becoming a reality. Berry is in discussion with Coca-Cola and looking to engage with an international NGO.

Learn more about the latest on the campaign at the blog or visit the group’s Facebook page.

[via cnewmark]