University of Gothenburg
University of Gothenburg
Plastic bottles
Plastic bottles, Dar es Salaam
Photo: Göteborgs universitet
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Recycling Networks

Research project
Active research
Website
Recycling networks. Grassroots
resilience
Project size
5400000
Project period
2016 - 2021
Project owner
Gothenburg Research Institute
Research partners
Participatory Sustainable Waste
Management
Financier
The Swedish Research Council
Area
Sustainability and
environment
Society and
economy
Topic
Business
Administration
Globalization
Studies
Public Administration
Studies
Sociology

Short description

Millions of informal waste pickers collect household waste daily in cities around the globe to earn a living. In doing so they make a significant contribution to reducing the carbon footprint of cities, recovering resources, improving environmental conditions and health of low-income residents, creating jobs and income among the poor.

Recycling Networks – grassroots resilience tackling climate, environmental and poverty challenges

Aim and research questions

The project aims at examining the challenges that innovative grassroots networks encounter and the livelihoods they generate, to improve recycling and household waste collection in informal settlements of global South cities. Strengthening of such initiatives, networks and practices promotes grassroots resilience, contribute to reduce both the adverse impact of cities on climate and environmental change (UN sustainable development target 11.6) as well as urban poverty (UN sustainable development goal 8). The project offers a critical inter- and transdisciplinary perspective on the issue of organizing resilience against climate and environmental change through grassroots initiatives such as cooperatives, associations, communitybased organizations, public-private partnerships and networks.

Field work, Kisumu, Kenya
Field work, Kisumu, Kenya photo: Patrik Zapata
Photo: Göteborgs universitet

The project addresses the following questions:

Q1. Processes: How do these grassroots initiatives and networks operate to bring about socio-environmental and economic change?
Q2. Challenges: What are the organizational, institutional, social, and material challenges encountered in the creation, development and stabilization of these initiatives and
networks?
Q3. Opportunities: How can such difficulties be overcome?

Methodology

The project's methodology is inspired by participatory action research through a combination of:
a) a multiple case study on waste picker initiatives in Managua (Nicaragua), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Buenos Aires (Argentina) Sâo Paulo (Brazil) and Kisumu (Kenya), based on interviews, observations, workshops and document analysis.
b) joint knowledge co-production with regional and global waste picker networks performing as knowledge hubs for the project.
c) An in-depth case study of the city of Kisumu, where the learnings from the multi-case studies will be integrated.
d) International joint research and waste picker seminars to co-produce knowledge to conceptualize solutions to the challenges.

Theories

Theoretically, the project will contribute to applying and expanding a combination of theories of socio-environmental (e.g. Mair & Marti 2006) and institutional entrepreneurship (e.g. Hardy & MacGuire 2008) with resilience (e.g. Folke, 2006) and grassroots innovation theories (e.g. Smith et al, 2017).

Preliminary results

•The potential of informal recycling networks to create green employment growth and recycling jobs among low-income residents.
•Waste management pilot projects supporting social entrepreneurs have transformed city management practices in informal settlements, leading towards hybrid models that
combine formal and informal practices, with modern and traditional technologies.
•Small-scale waste pickers initiatives providing household waste collection in informal settlements provide innovative solutions driven by a rationality to address social and
environmental challenges in their neighborhoods.
•They also transform the institutional arrangements improving political, legal and organizational conditions for the delivery of environmental services; challenge notions of the public and
responsibility in environmental governance .
•Unlike the standardized knowledge generated by donors and international organizations through ‘best practices’, easy to pack but often difficult to replicate in other contexts, these
South-to- South bottom-up networks bring in locally developed, innovative and flexible solutions, and also learnings from their failures.
•The co-production of novel knowledge by practitioners and scholars, that help understanding the challenges of grassroots resilience for a low carbon society, in the context of Southern cities.

 

Research team

• Jutta Gutberlet, Professor in Geography, University of Victoria, Canada, and Federal University of the ABC Region in São Paulo, Brazil
• Jaan-Henrik Kain, Professor in Urban Transformation. Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.
• Michael O. Oloko, Senior lecturer in Environmental Engineering. Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology Kisumu, Kenya.
• Goodluck Charles, Coordinator of Centre for Policy Research and Advocacy at the University of Dar es Salaam Business School, Tanzania.
• Jessica Pérez Reynosa, Associate professor in Business Administration, University of Central America, Nicaragua.
• Patrik Zapata, Professor in Public Administration, School of
Public Administration, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
• Sebastián Carenzo, researcher at CONICET; senior lecturer at the Institute for the Study of Science and Technology, National University of Quilmes, Argentina.
• María José Zapata, sociologist, Associate professor in Business
Administration, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, project leader.

Policy Briefs

Inclusive and sustainable waste governance (PDF)
This policy brief focuses on how local governments can develop more inclusive, democratic and sustainable waste gover- nance by partnering with, and strength- ening the role of, grassroots waste picker organizations and networks. Informed by action-research in Argentina, Brazil, Kenya, Nicaragua, and Tanzania, it shows how waste picker organisations are resilient forms of organizing which have contributed towards environmental education, advocated for more sustainable waste management solutions and developed grassroots innova- tions that contribute to a clean and healthy environment, as well as to more inclusive economiesand decent work.
pdf, 2.67 MB
Waste pickers' contributions to the transition towards a Circular Economy in the Global South (PDF)
This policy brief provides guidelines for building a transition towards Circu­lar Economy in the Global South that embraces not only economic and envi­ronmental aspects, but also social and equity concerns. It highlights the benefits of designing and implementing circular loops and cascades that go beyond the internat corporate production processes and engineering-based solutions, to encompass all the actors along the recycling value chain, including informal recyclers. Drawing on first hand field work data derived from two joint international action-research projects, we identify and provide policy recommendations related to:
■ Identifying market niches for inclusive business models focused on green jobs creation;
■ Developing low-tech processes to transform and process odd materials with recycling potential;
■ Implememing new waste governance models based on inclusive recycling at a local and regional scale.
The research evidence shows how waste pickers are widening the Circular Economy framework beyond the prevailing techno-economic core topics of the mainstream Circular Economy agenda.
pdf, 4.26 MB
Organized Waste pickers as environmental educators (PDF)
Waste pickers1 are organizing in member-based organizations and as such are increasingly being integrated in waste management systems. In some countries (such as Argentina, Brazil, Nicaragua) they have achieved förmal recognition as environmental service providers that conduct door-to-door collection of recy­clables, participate in educational activities at schools and contribute ro the clean-ups from littering, improving overall environmental health. Yet, most cities are far away from such an inclusive and sustainable waste management model and waste pickers still suffer from stigma and exclusion. Our research shows that cities can successfully work in collaboration with waste picker organizations, benefiting the community with education for better resource recovery (recycling) programs and improving the overall environmental condi­tions. It is central to recognize that waste pickers can become the environmen­tal ambassadors in their communities, advocating for zero waste, reuse and recycling, diminishing problems with littering, contamination and water logging. Their commitment ro recycling, waste collection and disposal sensi­tizes the community for best practices in waste management. Networking activities among waste pickers promote peer-to-peer learning that also helps them become better environmental educators. It ultimately takes an innovative local government to invite the accumulated knowledge from waste pickers into policy making to promote the desired shift rowards more sustainable and inclu­sive waste governance.
pdf, 5.57 MB
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