Compiled by Tasmi Quazi, based on an article by Patricia McCracken
The Inner-city Cardboard Recycling Project has been profiled in the Autumn 2012 edition of Business in Durban in an article titled “Waste Not Want Not” written by journalist Patricia McCracken and featured on pages 38-40. She writes primarily about the “Friends of the Recyclers” programme and the article is filled with wide-ranging and fascinating reflections from informal recyclers and the generators of waste and their supporters amongst local businesses such as KFC, city government entities such as the Priority Zone project and local residents.
She endorses the services of informal recyclers by affirming: “The homespun old saying ‘Where there’s muck, there’s money’, has taken on an empowering and heart-warmingly fresh twist in Durban’s CBD – and could soon be dispatching a great greening opportunity to the doorstep of your business…
…Two critical sets of targets make these versatile pioneers, entrepreneurs for today and tomorrow that forward-looking businesses will want to befriend. Firstly, Durban’s environmental targets aim for all citizens to be fully involved in recycling by 2020 and to make Durban a zero-waste city that no longer needs landfill sites by 2030. Secondly, the targets for creating a prosperous city, where all earn a decent living and support a sustainable lifestyle by 2060, include unemployment down by 25% to 2020 and 50% by 2030…”
Furthermore, one of the positive stories regaled is around specific KFC braches in the CBD which through Asiye eTafuleni’s mediation reversed the decision to contract private companies that would replace the informal recyclers that had been removing the waste from the branches for over 8 years prior to this new directive. KFC’s National operations manager is quoted as saying, “…Too often corporate decisions are made without considering individuals. This arrangement is both convenient and useful to people in the community. We hope the recyclers will work with more stores in the future…”
Download [download id=”37″] to read the rest of the captivating article. To read other articles written about the Inner-city Cardboard Recycling Project, click on the links below:
https://aet.org.za/2012/02/maria-queen-of-cardboard/
https://aet.org.za/2011/05/cardboard-recycling-project-profiled-in-delivery-magazine/
https://aet.org.za/2011/02/imagine-durban-cardboard-recycling-project-%E2%80%93-03122010/
Ref: Visit to Asiye eTafuleni by OR Tambo District Municipality Training Group
Dear Tasmi,
Thank you for allowing us to visit AeT and the Palmer Street Cardboard Recyclers on 24 May 2012. The group gained valuable insight and understanding into the importance of building an inclusive environment for those who are not normally considered to be part of the formal economy. The information gleaned from your presentation and the time spent with the recyclers was extremely valuable and we all left your premises feeling humbled at how much can be accomplished with the right attitude and work ethic.
We wish you every success with your future plans and hope to visit again when we have the opportunity!
Sincerely,
June Lombard
I Can Do (Enviromental Management and Training)
KwaZulu Natal Office