The documentary “La Basura de Hoy, el Tesoro de Mañana” includes moving testimonies from Bolivian waste pickers. The film aims to bring consciousness to the struggles, necessities and support that waste pickers, often not valued for their contributions, need as they struggle to bring dignity to the important social work they do.
Rag Pickers are the backbone of a neat and beautiful metropolis. The green workers manage entire trash of urban locates around the globe. However, their contribution to the city’s waste management remains unrecognized. Vulnerability is exacerbated by the municipal solid waste management rules 2013.
In this video taken at the Waste and Citizenship Festival in France, Roberto Prates Reis, a representative of the National Movement of Waste Pickers in Brazil (MNCR) talks about the struggle of the “biffins” of Paris to defend their livelihood.
Check out Safai Sena’s first newsletter in English: “Safainama: Voice of Waste Pickers.”
The PRISM project (Poverty Reduction of Informal Waste Workers) recently published three videos about their work with waste pickers in Nepal.
Waste pickers have found that collective action in defense of their rights and livelihoods is an effective solution to transforming the difficult working conditions, discrimination and harassment they face.
The documentary “Catador”, meaning “Waste Picker”, which explores the struggle of the 246 waste pickers of Gericinó, in Rio de Janeiro, as they face the closure of the dump that has sustained them and their families. The documentary was made by Professor Andrew Mills of Northwestern University (United States) with students from th
El documental “Clasificadores. Algunas experiencias del trabajo con residuos en Uruguay” es uno de los productos comunicacionales elaborados y pretende reflejar las condiciones en las que viven y trabajan los clasificadores de residuos sólidos así como algunas de sus principales reivindicaciones.
Waste picker representatives from Brazil, Colombia and India were part of the WIEGO delegation at the 102th International Labour Conference in Geneva to bring attention to waste picking and recycling as a key sector for green jobs and sustainable development. Together with WIEGO colleagues, the delegates actively participated in the discussions that took place between June 5th and 20th and engaged in discussions with other groups and key players. For the waste picker delegation, this year’s Conference was the first step in a long process of establishing a voice and presence in the ILO.
Waste picker representatives from Brazil, Colombia and India are at the 102th International Labour Conference in Geneva to bring attention to waste picking and recycling as a key sector for green jobs and sustainable development. Please see below the speech of Nohra Padilla, of Colombia, and Alex Cardoso, of Brazil, presented at the plenary.
Here is a video of the Goldman Prize acceptance speech of Nohra Padilla, informal recycler and leader of the Colombian waste pickers’ movement. As part of the Goldman Prize, Padilla and other supporters of inclusive waste management (including the director of the Bogotá solid waste management department) were taken on a tour of San Francisco’s Zero Waste program. See the gallery of photos in this post. Also, Nohra Padilla is also scheduled to meet with President Obama. More on that soon!
Congratulations, Nohra Padilla, informal recycler and leader with the Association of Recyclers of Bogotá and the National Association of Recyclers in Colombia, for winning today the Goldman Environmental Prize for South and Central America. This prize has been called the environmental “Nobel” or “Oscar”. It comes with a $150,000 cash award.
“Chronicle of a Fight for Inclusion: The December 2012 garbage crisis of Bogotá” (now with English subtitles) shows organized waste pickers promptly taking actions to reduce the impact of the garbage crisis in Bogota and giving an account of the series of unfortunate events and bad decisions that led to it, and of their struggles and victories throughout time to secure their rights and livelihoods. In doing so, they demonstrate their capacity to provide efficient and quality services to the city’s waste management system.
This video discusses Auto 275, a Bogotá law meant to protect waste pickers’ rights as public service providers and to guarantee payment. It led to the court order that resulted in the organized waste pickers of Bogotá receiving priority as service providers and receiving payment for the first time. Auto 275 is explained via interviews conducted by a Bogotá waste picker with government authorities. The version with English subtitles is coming soon!
Chintan Environmental Research & Action Group and Safai Sena just released a new documentary, Credits vs Carbon Credits. The film explores the effects of large projects vying for carbon credits on the livelihoods of waste pickers.
