Your Community Problems & Your Resources to Solve Them

Resources & Challenges

Problems are solved by carefully studying resources that are available to solve the problem and careful definition and identification of the problem to be solved. 

Waste Free 23 is an initiative created by the Waste Pickers of Kenya to solve a very important problem.   The waste pickers are on the front lines of humanities war on waste.  Every year the waste problem created by Humans grows and every year little has been done to mitigate the damage all this waste has had on humans and the environment. 

The Waste Pickers of Kenya SOLVED the waste problem by careful study of their resources and the problem.   Please use the example of the Kenyan Waste Pickers as a guide for you as you look at improving the way your community manages waste.  

Waste Pickers Resources:

• People 
• Municipal waste – household waste. Organic, plastic etc. 
• The sun, wind, rain, earth and natural environment. 
• The larger community – in the city, state, country and world wide. 

The problem

• Poverty- low wages – poor working conditions
• Only a small percentage of waste is “valuable”.  
• The larger community has done little to support Waste Pickers and that is unlikely to change

The Solution: Faced with their resources and their problems the waste pickers as a team looked for novel solutions:  

• Low wages are causing poverty and poor working conditions
  • Low wages are caused by very little of value in the dump
  • Low wages are caused by the low price of the items the waste pickers sell
  • Solution: Increase the value of the items collected by adding value!  Instead of selling plastic …make something out of the plastic then sell the product!
  • Solution:  Instead of collecting and selling just a small portion of the trash..collect, add value and sell ALL the trash
• A single buyer is defining what is “valuable” and therefore low demand and prices
  • Solution – find additional buyers for the existing waste. Find buyers for the waste that has no value now. 

If you have any questions, contact:

• www.wastefree23.org
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/1257683511822828
• Wastefree23@gmail.com
• Whatsapp +14084620209