waste pickers mobility

Waste pickers (in Afrika) have a difficult job of having a livelihood from recycled waste even though they provide a critical service that prevents plastic and other recyclable waste from reaching our oceans and landfill. instead, they are looked down upon, marginalised and not recognised for a crucial service they provide to cities and its citizen. there is a possibility of mainstreaming waste pickers livelihood in order for them to receive better pay. 

waste picking as a livelihood is both hazardous, unreliable and a unrecognised service provided to cities and suburbs yet waste pickering is not seen for the value it has. this is because waste pickers are not differentiated from drug junkies or street vandals who scrunch bins for food and leave a mess behind... waste picking is also not efficient enough in its methods from waste pickers e.g. the mode of mobility used is heavy and in-efficient and areas traveled vs material collected does not balance. there is no central place waste pickers can take there recyclable waste to hold while they collect more and have to transport huge amounts to long distances. And waste pickers are not mobilised and a recognisable business entity to negotiate better pay from middle men and whole sale buyers      

1. working on the waste pickers mobility; creating innovative low-tech mobility carts from recycled bikes that enable waste pickers become more efficient, reach further and visible for safety on roads. these are low in cost in production and maintenance. the carts would be trackable to enable optimisation of the service by connecting need to service. it would also enable manage theft   

2. creating central spaces for recycling trade; within cities & suburbs to enable sorting out at source. we have succeeded in negotiating such spaces both in CBD's and suburbs. these space are containment facilities and not recycling centres; i.e the hold the waste for a maximum of a day as the await collection my main company buying from waste pickers. these spaces also enable data collecting and health care of waste pickers i.e. providing masks, gloves, medicine etc 

3. engaging citizens through a waste app to create awareness and assist in the cause while closing the loop in the circular economy by giving waste directly to waste pickers. the waste app is already developed, negotiated on and ready to be localised. it is a waste UBER, enabling waste pickers to engage citizens and organisations that provide desired recyclable waste  

the solution serves multiple users; 

1. the waste pickers; they use the solution/s to further business  

2. the city; which needs to sort out waste and recycle waste 

3. citizens and society; as we all need to rethink waste of recycling to minimise waste in oceans and landfills 

waste pickers, citizens and the city as a whole (with its policy makers and municipality functions) are connected via social innovation to collectively work together in empowering a marginalised ground (waste pickers) towards mainstream development by creating capacity on waste pickers to better trade while enabling the city to provide better infrastructure support while citizens are able to separate waste and have it collected by waste pickers. the process also further establishes waste pickers to be better educated, skilled and have better heath care and support from local governments, NGOs and other forms of support.     

the solutions are low-tech, social driven and connecting existing stakeholders within the waste collection business in a quick and easy manner whilst solving a much required problem. the approach is applicable to the South African and African context where societies are more social connected i comparison to other societies globally. it eliminates the middle men that take advantage of single waste pickers by using the collective power of the waste pickers, active citizens, the city (municipalities) and well wishers (NGO's etc)

imagine waste pickers using low-tech smart city technology (A smart city is an urban area that uses different types of electronic Internet of things sensors to collect data and then use insights gained from that data to manage assets, resources and services efficiently, in return using that data to better improve the operations across the city).this means using really simple and affordable systems to mobilize waste pickers and a city towards citizen management of waste by connecting waste pickers to where there is demand to collect.  

the technology is not new - its application though is different and noble. its connection with the circular economy further empowers both waste pickers and citizens to use technology towards the betterment of society and the environment   

Waste mobility; https://youtu.be/Qb6a11dpeLc

Waste App: https://www.cataki.org/en/

Community - Port Elizabeth; 

by simplifying use of existing familiar technological advances and driving them towards a cause that deals with poverty while saving the environment. 

- Cataki users are over 

- presently 4 wast mobility carts and bikes have been tested 

- presently the city of port Elizabeth is testing one centralised waste pickers

between July, August the City of Port Elizabeth is supporting a test pilot project  

- to further develop the digital aspects of the waste carts / bikes, localise the Cataki app and expand to the rest of the city of port elizabeth in a years time. 

- in two years time to expand to Cape Town and Johanessburg 

- in three years tine to expand to East Africa   

mainly financial constraints    

by providing a working prototype for the City Of Port Elzabeth then getting other cities to buy in 

full-time = 3 people 

part-time = 3 people 

contracted = 5 people

we have a mixed and diverse group of experts in different aspects of the project that form the team. we have the city of Port Elizabeth accepting that we test a prototype out and ongoing RDI (research development and innovation) in a level is low tech enough to activate a citywide initiative   

- several universities locally and internationally support different aspects of research

- several NGO's locally and internationally  support with different strategies 

- the local municipality and Development Agency of the Port Elizabeth 

the idea is to connect waste pickers to the entire city to enable an alternative waste collection of recyclable waste going to into landfill and oceans