- How Kadadasi built a community around recycled paper
Paper is easy to overlook. It moves through our lives, printed, handed out, folded away, and more often than not, thrown out within hours.
Offices run on it. Events depend on it. Programmes, folders, notepads, packaging. It is everywhere and rarely invites scrutiny. The system around it is built for speed and volume. Trees go in, products come out, and the afterlife of it all is rarely part of the conversation.
Paper production is one of the largest drivers of deforestation, with millions of trees cut each year to meet global demand. The process is resource-intensive, using large volumes of water and energy while generating chemical waste. Once discarded, much of it ends up in landfills despite being a material that could be reused.
Recycled paper has long existed on the edges. For years, it carried a certain perception. Rough. Uneven. Not quite finished. Something you used when you had to, not when you had a choice.
That perception is beginning to change as people pay closer attention to what they consume. Texture is no longer seen as a flaw. Imperfection now reads differently.
There were those, however, working with these ideas long before they became part of a wider shift. Long before sustainability entered everyday language in the way it has today, Kadadasi was already building a practice around recycled paper, treating it not as an alternative, but as a starting point.
“Kadadasi didn’t begin as a business idea,” said Founder Ira Basnayaka. “It started as a realisation. We saw how much paper was being discarded every day and what that meant in a larger sense – unnecessary waste, trees being cut, and a system that wasn’t thinking about its long-term impact.”
That realisation has since evolved into a quietly influential operation, sitting at the intersection of craft, environmental responsibility, and social impact.
Rethinking value through paper
At its core, Kadadasi works with paper but approaches it differently.
It takes what has already been used, sometimes once, sometimes multiple times, and gives it a second life through a manual, labour-intensive process that prioritises both material and maker. The base is waste paper, combined with natural inputs like banana fibre, grass, and agricultural byproducts. The result is textured, varied, and intentionally imperfect.
“Every sheet carries a story,” Ira explained. “It’s paper that wasn’t thrown away, trees that weren’t cut, and a process that didn’t rely on heavy industrial systems. Instead, it’s made slowly, by hand, by people.”
For a long time, recycled paper struggled to find acceptance in premium spaces. “Earlier, recycled paper was often seen as inferior, rough, inconsistent, and not suitable for premium use,” Ira said. “Today, that perception is shifting. Now, what was once considered a flaw in the texture, the unevenness, is seen as character.”
Building an ecosystem, not a factory
Kadadasi is often described as a paper-making business. That is accurate, but incomplete.
The operation sits within a larger ecosystem that has been shaped over decades. The land itself, reforested and developed into a biodiverse environment by Ira’s husband, architect Vijiitha Basnayaka, forms the physical and conceptual foundation. The workshop, built by repurposing an old mill and using natural materials like clay, reflects a deliberate attempt to keep production aligned with its surroundings.
The process is low-impact by design. Minimal electricity. Manual systems. Waste water redirected into a permaculture garden. Even the raw materials are sourced with the same thinking, drawing from what is already available rather than extracting new resources.
Alongside this sits a social structure that is central to how Kadadasi operates. A team of around 15 women work within the workshop, supported by a wider network through outsourced work. Many come from backgrounds where employment options are limited or unstable.
For Ira, this was not an add-on. It was part of the starting point.“We saw communities with the skill and willingness to create something meaningful with their hands, but without enough opportunities,” she said. “That intersection of environmental responsibility on one side and untapped human potential on the other is what sparked Kadadasi.”
The result is a workplace that is designed to be flexible, accessible, and stable. One that allows women to balance work with family responsibilities while building skills and income over time.
There is also a less visible layer to this ecosystem. A near two-acre forest, grown and maintained alongside the business. Staff are encouraged to engage with it, whether through agriculture or simply as part of the environment they work within. It is an extension of the same thinking. That production does not need to sit apart from nature. It can exist within it
Making a craft commercially relevant
For much of its early life, Kadadasi grew through exhibitions and niche markets. That is beginning to shift, driven by the next phase of leadership.
Nisayuru Basnayaka, Ira’s son, comes from a background in design and advertising. His focus has been on positioning Kadadasi beyond a niche product.
“My main input to Kadadasi is marketing, advertising, and taking it to the people,” he said. “For the last four or five years, I’ve been getting the message out and showing who we are and what we do.”
A key part of that effort has been engaging with corporate clients, particularly around events. Corporate events generate large volumes of printed material – programmes, folders, notepads, leaflets, packaging. Most of it is used briefly and then discarded; much of it not recyclable.
“In a big event, on a per person level, we consume about 1.5 kilos of printed materials,” Nisayuru noted. “With Kadadasi, we can replace all of that.”
For a 100-person event, that can translate to around 200 kilos of waste. Multiply that across events and the impact becomes clear.
Kadadasi’s approach is simple. Replace conventional materials with recycled alternatives and reduce waste at source.
Seeded paper is one example. Printed materials that, instead of ending up in landfills, can be planted to grow into something new.
“Even with corporate events, there are printed leaflets, books, diaries, and folders. Kadadasi can replace all of that,” he said. “We have seeded paper, so even if you throw it away, a plant will grow out of that.”
Many companies now operate within Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) frameworks, but everyday materials like event print are often overlooked.
“Corporates think about doing large things to reduce their carbon footprint,” Nisayuru said. “But many people don’t think about leaflets.”
The challenge is cost. Recycled paper is often more expensive upfront, but the long-term impact is wider.
“In the short term, it sounds expensive, even as much as double the cost of standard paper products,” he said. “But if you think about the long-term impact, it helps communities and the environment.”
Expanding what paper can do
Kadadasi today produces more than paper – notebooks, folders, bags, packaging, and custom materials for specific clients, all built on the same foundation.
Recent collaborations have explored using tea waste, brewing byproducts, and other materials in paper production, opening up new possibilities.
Ira’s original vision continues to guide its growth. “The hope is to grow Kadadasi without losing what makes it special,” she said. “There’s an opportunity to take the brand further, to work with bigger clients, explore new formats, and push creative boundaries while still staying rooted in purpose.”
Kadadasi does not treat sustainability as an add-on. It is built into how it works, what it uses, and what it chooses to keep in circulation.