Three young people are out on a crusade to collect empty glass bottles for recycling.

They aim to collect 500 bottles in six hours today during the Patches Fair at the Barrakka Gardens (4.30 p.m.)

The bottles are then flattened and sold as platters.

Andrew Borg Wirth, Janet Barthet and Rachel Cassar started their 'business' last year during the HSBC Young Enterprise competition, and have decided to keep it going.

Samsara, as the venture is called, has a social slant, the purpose being recycling, rather than profit.

They have been picking up every empty glass bottle they can lay their hands on across Malta and Gozo so that even the rattling of bottles in their car boots makes them happy.

The name Samsara was chosen because it refers to reincarnation and the constant flux of life – highly apt, as the trio are actually giving life to bottles that would otherwise be discarded. The platters are versatile and function perfectly as cheese platters and also double up as a plate for dips, offering myriad uses on the dining table.

While artists have dubbed them 'the perfect palettes', most people have used them to decorate their house. Each is unique, with every bottle slumping in its own way with no two platters sharing the exact same characteristics.

yoursamsara@gmail.com 99593633.