Beyond the Bin Civic activism in waste management

[Music]

in 2008

i had moved into a new home in a new

neighborhood

very close to my house was an empty site

that was used to dub

garbage it was an ugly sight and a

stinky mess

my first encounter with the issue of

waste

so close at hand i had three choices

ignore complain or engage

i chose to engage as i believe to solve

the waste challenges

a social and behavioral change is

required

and that can happen only with engaged

citizens

my journey as an engaged citizen started

over a decade ago when i joined the

volunteer group

in my area it’s here i learned

about segregation of waste composting or

waste and reduction of waste

segregation at source and composting at

home

a practice that i started then continues

till date in fact it has become a way of

life

over the next couple of years my

involvement with waste management

moved beyond my community to a wider

circle

and around 2014 i became part of solid

waste management

roundtable a city level collective of

passionate waste management

practitioners

volunteering in the space i’ve had the

opportunity

to observe and meet many different

change makers

individuals who are self-motivated or

inspired by others

with some knowledge and guidance they

easily adopt the best practices

then we have people who are following a

sustainable lifestyle who use

social media to share their stories

amplifying the message of conscious

living

there are champions who believe in

collective action

they bring together like-minded people

in the community

and find solutions for local problems

last but not least are the active

citizens

with leadership skills who work with the

government

solution providers fellow residents

and create a change benefiting a larger

group

of society bangalore

has a vibrant network of such engaged

citizens

making a difference every day and that’s

why

we have had so many successful city-wide

campaigns

that have led to her behavior change and

large-scale adoption of good waste

management

practices over the years i have been

part

of many of these campaigns two been won

back

a campaign promoting three-way

segregation

when this method was mandated by the

high court

we helped many communities to understand

segregation

and implement it i remember the time

we drove 20 kilometers to pick up 20

kids

to distribute in my neighborhood

a campaign very close to my heart it

promotes

to have three green spots at home

compost

grow and cook it’s then that i tried

different methods of composting and

started growing

food on my terrace i was among the

hundreds of volunteers

who conducted workshops in corporates

communities

and made home composting an urban

reality

in bangalore trashonomics a simple book

on solid waste management

with the objective of empowering our

children

to become responsible citizens of

tomorrow

as a master trainer i have trained many

volunteers

conducted sessions in schools for

students and teachers

apart from engaging on campaigns as a

citizen

it is equally important to be involved

in the local governance

and in bangalore this is possible as

being

a part of the ward committee

as a what committee member along with a

few volunteers

and local officials we took up the task

of creating block maps and mapping the

waste generators

this activity helped us to

increase the vehicle allocation for

better waste collection

this clearly proves that when we engage

we can make the government listen to the

citizen voice

and bring about a change so i’m sure

you’ll agree the collective impact of

engaged citizens

has the power to transform society and

address the waste challenges of our

times

i am proud to be a part of this

ecosystem here in bangalore

who inspire share and support one

another

come join us and be a part of a citizen

movement