2014, Geneva, ILO International Perspectives from interns – Camila Castañeda
Articles: Online retail in China – Internships in Ireland – Generation Facebook and online spaces – Recycling towards sustainable development – OIT et les solutions vertes.
Recycling towards sustainable development, Camila Castañeda
In the 2012 report “Working towards sustainable development: opportunities for decent work and social inclusion in a green economy”, the ILO emphasizes that the shift to a greener economy is not only necessary given the current unsustainable growth model, but it can also potentially support the creation of decent work and improve social inclusion.1 Decent jobs, whether in agriculture, industry, services and administration, that contribute to preserving or restoring the quality of the environment, are known as “green jobs”.2 Recycling is one of the sectors where there is a huge potential for creating green jobs. Whereas in industrialized countries this activity is largely formal, in most developing countries it is undertaken by informal waste pickers.
It is estimated that 1% of the urban population, approximately 15 million people, obtains their livelihood from collecting, segregating and selling recyclable materials.3 Informal recycling has been paramount in reducing the amount of waste that is openly dumped, burned or land filled.4
Nevertheless, the job of waste pickers is far from being “decent work”. Waste pickers are exposed to various occupational health and safety hazards, generally have a low income and have been often considered public nuisances or criminals, and are thus discriminated against in society.5
“Many waste pickers around the world have joined cooperatives and associations, seeking to dignify their work and improve their quality of life”
As a way to overcome these difficulties, many waste pickers around the world have joined cooperatives and associations, seeking to dignify their work, strengthen their networks and bargaining power and improve their quality of life.6
In Latin America, waste picker cooperatives have been pivotal in bringing about change in relation to waste pickers’ rights and livelihoods. In Colombia, for example, they have actively participated in different scenarios at the national and even international level, in order to demand changes in the public policy.7 A landmark victory was achieved in 2003, when the Constitutional Court, based on a writ filed by the Recyclers’ Association of Bogotá, demanded the inclusion of waste pickers in all future waste management tendering processes.8 Following the Court’s mandate, in December of 2012, the local government implemented a new waste collection system in the city, whereby recycling is mandatory, waste pickers have exclusive rights over recyclable materials and are remunerated via tariff revenue in addition to the income they obtain through selling the material to the intermediaries or industries.
Recognizing informal waste workers as environmental actors (and relevant in the context of a Green Economy), as opposed to a nuisance, has fostered a transition from repressive to supportive policies regarding waste pickers.9 However, there is much to be done in the path of making recycling a truly green activity. By creating economically efficient models based on the entrepreneurial skills of waste pickers and their ability to obtain high recovery rates, it would be possible to reduce the environmental impact of waste and at the same time, improve their livelihoods.10
- (2012). Working towards sustainable development: Opportunities for decent work and social inclusion in a green economy. Geneva: ILO, Page 1. Retrieved from http:// www.ilo.org/global/publications/ilo-bookstore/order-online/ books/WCMS_181836/lang–en/index.htm
- Ibid. Page 6
- Medina, (2008). The informal recycling sector in developing countries. Organizing waste pickers to enhance their impact. The World Bank, Public-Private Infrastrcuture Advisory Facility, (44), 4.
- Gerdes, , & Gunsilius, E. (2010). The Waste Experts: Enabling Conditions for Informal Sector Integration in Solid Waste Management. Lessons learned from Brazil, Egypt and India. Eschborn: GTZ. Retrieved from http://www.giz.de/en/ downloads/gtz2010-waste-experts-conditions-is-integration.pdf
- Medina, (2005). Waste Picker Cooperatives in Developing Countries. Ahmedabad, India: WIEGO. Retrieved from http://wiego.org/publications/waste-picker-cooperatives-developing-countries.
- Wilson, D. C., Araba, A. O., Chinwah, K., & Cheeseman, C. R. (2009). Building recycling rates through the informal sector. Waste management (New York, N.Y.), 29(2), 629–35. doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2008.06.016
- Medina, M. (2007). The world’s scavengers. Salvaging for sustainable consumption and production. Plymouth: AltaMira
- Ruiz-Restrepo, A., & Barnes, S. (2010). WIEGO Report on the Policy Environment of Informal Urban Waste Pickers and Artisanal Mine Workers in Colombia. WIEGO. Retrieved from http://wiego.org/publications/wiego-report-policy-environment-informal-urban-waste-pickers-and-artisanal-mine-workers
- Corte Constitucional. (2003). Sala primera de revisión. Sentencia del 20 de agosto del 2003. Bogotá: Magistrado ponente: Jaime Araujo Rentería. (Sentencia T-724). Retrieved from http://www.alcaldiabogota.gov.co/sisjur/ normas/Norma1.jsp?i=11617
- Do Carmo, M. S., & Puppim de Oliveira, J. A. (2010). The Semantics of Garbage and the organization of the recyclers: Implementation challenges for establishing recycling cooperatives in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 54(12), 1261–1268. doi:10.1016/ resconrec.2010.04.005
- Gerdes, , & Gunsilius, E. (2010).
This document is published by the Intern Board and reflects the views of its authors in their personal capacities. The International Labour Office and the International Labour Organization bear no responsibility for its contents.
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