Waste Ventures features in The Solution Revolution
With the support of partners such as the SIDA Innovations Against Poverty Program, Waste Ventures has reached new and impressive grounds in shifting the conversation about waste management in developing nations. We are focused on providing waste pickers with the basics to shift from being "rag-pickers" to waste management professionals.
Waste Ventures does this by developing relationships with both local governments and waste pickers. We are encouraging local governments and waste pickers to adapt a system that involves collecting recyclables and organic waste materials. Waste Ventures is seeing profit opportunities that are increasing the daily income of waste pickers from ~$1.00/day to ~$3.00/day, a much needed resource.
Waste Ventures is also working to protect the safety of the waste pickers. Their work can be dangerous to their health and in an effort to curve their exposure, Waste Ventures is supplying cheaper and more ergonomic waste carts that it has developed.
To impact the waste pickers, we are working with the government in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh to expand our efforts. Working with forward-thinking government leaders, Waste Ventures India has started environmentally processing garbage in Miryalaguda, Andhra Pradesh at no cost to the municipality. The system is cost-effective, increases the environmental processing of waste, and increases the income of the waste collectors. We are now expanding to implement our innovation in over 40 municipalities in the region.
In Motihari, a smaller town in Northern Bihar with a population of 100,000, we have successfully implemented a system that involves local residents paying a monthly nominal fee to have their garbage collected by our employed waste pickers. We were pleasantly surprised by the number of enthusiastic residents willing to pay for primary collection. The biggest reason cited was an aspiration for 'big city' services like doorstep garbage collection to be replicated in the inner cities in which we work.
Our innovation was most recently featured in the book, The Solution Revolution, written by William Eggers. The book, published by Harvard Business Press, highlights innovative individuals and organizations that are working to find solutions for some of societies biggest challenges. The chapter featuring Waste Ventures was heavily featured, including an article in The Huffington Post and a feature of the chapter in Stanford Social Innovation Review. We're grateful to the SIDA Innovation Against Poverty program for providing the start-up support required to try revolutionary new strategies - especially in an impact ecosystem that is averse to supporting new ventures.