INNER CITY CARDBOARD RECYCLING PROJECT DURBAN PEER EXCHANGE 23 TH FEB 2011 Asiye etafuleni Unit 111 Business Incubation Building SEDA ethekwini 127 Johannes Nkosi Street Durban t: 031 309 3880 f: 031 309 3878 tasmi@aet.org.za
o Programmatic benefits: Greater access to materials New awareness of OHS needs & ergonomic advantages of trolley Effective ongoing technical feedback o Benefits of organising: Information sharing led to stronger negotiation power & more uniform prices Sharing of some social challenges led to positive outcomes i.e. conflict resolution with security officials & recyclers themselves Greater cohesion with fellow recyclers and formal entities Platform to voice other essential needs & socioemotional challenges i.e. access to shelter, request for assistance with opening a bank account EMERGING POSITIVE OUTCOMES
o Greater dignity and ownership through progressive engagement with the programme o Improved perception of informal recyclers o Better understanding of integrated urban management challenges in the recycling sector [Article on Sustainable City Exhibition featured in Daily News, 16 August 2010, page 8] EMERGING POSITIVE OUTCOMES
o Ensuring environmental sustainability will mean finding creative solutions to the zero waste strategy are we congnisant of good practices that exemplify the inclusion of the informal recycling sector? Latin American Countries & India case studies: Informal recycling sector is a significant driver in the recycling agenda Informal recycling sector work in cooperative structures Emerging synergy between formal & informal recycling sectors
o Current local limitations: Absence of a common vision for informal recycling sector as seen by LG: What are the implications for the informal sector as the recycling industry changes? Formal waste collection system dominates with a focus on viable areas using a costefficiency model This is deepening the unresponsiveness of recycling programmes as it is undermining the full potential of sustainability benefits Consequently, informal sector has been coveting materials in formal areas who are considered deviant, as opposed to the possibility of structuring it as a coexistent waste management strategy Informal recycling sector generally operate in a highly individualised manner
o Cooperative dynamic: Focused pilot project with a specific brief twinned with more long-term and established approach of LG programmes However, the challenge is to ensure that they can be integrated o Need for a multifaceted project matrix: Currently most of the agents are outside direct linefunction delivery i.e. Imagine Durban/CPU, PZ, Architecture & Buildings, AeT Who is leading the recycling agenda? How do we maximise the positive roles and participation of a potential partnership?
o Benefits of an Integrated Partnership based Programme Provides opportunity to test ideas that don t exist in LG Additional resources working in the sector may bring supplementary skills & exposes all parties to innovation & ideas Enable cost-effective urban management i.e. less resources for policing & cleaning Can mitigate perceptions of informal recyclers undermining private/lg programmes Counter non-productive programmes Enhance enviromental sustainability Increase social cohesion
o Benefits of an Integrated Partnership based Programme (cont.) Ensures that informal livelihoods can continue under better conditions: Not by destabilising the existing economic system by increasing competition, but rather increasing the stream of recyclable material Enhancing opportunities for this vulnerable group within the recycling chain & naturally aligning with the Imagine Durban aspirations
o Conduct pilots over a reasonable period of time to establish the full reality of the challenges to ensure that the implemented programme is sustainable o Contextual circumstances are critical determines manner in which informal recyclers operate o Urban management solutions should encompass design interventions as a critical part of a multifaceted, partnership based approach TOP THREE LESSONS