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Reducing Waste in Coastal Cities (RWCC) Strategic Planning Meeting and West África Waste pickers Workshop

April 1, 2019 - April 5, 2019

Workers in the informal economy from six different sectors. A Domestic Worker, a Garment Worker, a Home-Based Worker, a Street Vendors / Market Trader, a Transport Worker, and a Waste Picker.

Dakar, Senegal

Dakar waste picker exchange 2019

Photo credit: Sonia Dias

The Reducing Waste in Coastal Cities Strategic Planning Meeting and the first-ever West African waste pickers Workshop was held in Dakar, Senegal from 1-5 April 2019.

The event gathered organizers, global waste picker leaders from across the globe (Argentina, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Guinea, India, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo) as well as academics and WIEGO specialists. Participants reflected on global trends surrounding ocean pollution and plastic contamination and their intersection with solid waste management practices. They also assessed how waste pickers can articulate and increase their contribution to the reduction of pollution in coastal cities, and they mapped the way forward for the implementation of the second year of the RWCC project.

Key Presenters included:

World Renowned Plastics Expert, National Geographic Explorer and Associate Professor in the College of Engineering at the University of Georgia (UGA), Dr. Jenna Jambeck delivered a presentation: Ocean Plastics: Can we come together to solve this global problem? Dr. Jambeck provided training and input for project planning.
Coastal Cities Project Officer Taylor Cass Talbott discussed the relationship between waste pickers and ocean plastics in her presentation, Introduction to Plastics and waste pickers.
Organizer Carolina Palacios, CTEP and waste picker Jacquelina Flores delivered a presentation entitled, Strategies for effectively engaging the public: Reciclando en Nuestros Manos.

From 4-5 April 2019, the Federation des Association Feminines du Senegal (FAFS) hosted an intensive workshop for waste pickers entitled, Towards Worker’s Based Guidelines for Final Disposal Upgrade and Women’s Empowerment in Inclusive Solid Waste Management West African Waste picker Workshop. This workshop, prepared by WIEGO sector specialist Sonia Días, sensitized waste pickers from West Africa about global trends in final disposal (from open dumps to sanitary landfills) and livelihoods protection alternatives. Themes included: Dumpsite Closing Strategies and Women’s Empowerment. The role of women’s inclusive solid waste management was a particular focus.