but namé recycling in cameroon has a mission to promote a circular economy by giving a second life to plastic waste and reducing plastic pollution. at the same time, they hope to bring economic opportunities to the communities that they serve.

namé collects various kinds of plastics through a network of informal collectors and businesses in cameroon. they then turn much of that waste into large, fully recycled pallets that replace the need for wooden ones.

filmed by charlie mark, planet 世界杯欧洲预选赛免费直播 .

douala is the economic capital and chief port of cameroon. it’s situated on the southeastern shore of the wouri river estuary, on the atlantic ocean coast about 130 miles (210 km) west of yaoundé, – the country’s political capital.

the united nations identified inadequate collection and disposal of solid waste as one of the major environmental concerns of the city of douala. 

“solid waste is affecting and changing the environment adversely in many ways. plastic waste, for example, is carelessly buried in the soil and modifies soil texture – making it less porous. more frequently plastic waste is burnt in the open air resulting in the release of persistent organic pollutants (pops),” the un noted in a study.

according to cameroon’s ministry of environment, nature protection, and sustainable development, the country generates over 6 million tons of waste per year. in 2022 alone, the amount of plastic waste generated amounted to about 600,000 tons — roughly 10% of the total country’s waste — the highest in central africa. among the total waste the country produces, it’s estimated the city of douala alone generates 20 tons of plastic waste daily.

how one artist is fostering sustainability in his work

faced with this issue, one artist has taken it upon himself to bring about change. serge binen, a native of douala and environmental and climate activist, has embarked on a unique mission to clean his city by transforming waste into beautiful works of art.

“i’m passionate about recycling waste. i give life to waste — all that’s rejected — plastics, metals, and wood. once it is disposed of, i recollect and breathe life into them,” binen said. for this artist, recycling waste might be a passion today, but this wasn’t the case initially. 

“i was born in the swamps of new bell, precisely in the ngange neighborhood. each time it rained, lots of waste flooded our neighborhood. equally, the waste [that] people were disposing of was polluting our immediate environment. that pushed me to begin transforming it [waste], in a bid to have a clean and less polluted environment. that’s what motivated me,” binen said.

binen’s vision as an artist is to create captivating artworks to address the environmental crisis plaguing his community. he saw immense potential in discarded materials – such as plastic, metal, wood, and aluminum – contributing to the overwhelming waste problem the city is grappling with.

according to binen, recycling waste is a long process. 

“when i want to recycle waste, i begin by brainstorming. that can take a month. once i have the structure of what i want to create in mind, i begin visiting dump sites to identify what waste to collect for the piece of art i want to produce. there are days i go as far as inshore to fetch waste that has been flown downstream during heavy rains – especially wood for sculpture designs,” binen said. 

blending arts and activism

though binen’s recycling efforts are already creating an impact, he says bringing others on board will do much more. 

“combating wrongful waste disposal and pollution requires joined efforts – because the amount of waste produced daily is overwhelming,” binen said. 

to get others invested in this initiative, he’s integrated “artivism” in his work – a combination of works of art and activism. according to the arts council santa cruz county, “artists show what activists are up to in ways that people can connect to – they put activism and the things we care about on the map.”

“to me, transforming waste into stunning sculptures, murals, and other by-products is the art aspect. while sensitizing people, having installations that captivate the eye and spark conversations around climate change, as well as raise awareness of the dangers of waste to the planet is the activism component of my work artivism,” binen said.

by transforming non-degradable waste into beautiful and meaningful art pieces, binen advocates for environmental protection and raises awareness about the urgent need for action and a sustainable lifestyle.

to amplify his impact, he’s collaborated with local authorities, environmental organizations, and fellow artists. together, they organize cleanup campaigns, educational programs, and public installations that inspire and mobilize the community. 

binen’s collaborative approach has helped bridge the gap between authorities and citizens, thereby fostering a sense of unity and purpose in the fight against waste. 

looking ahead

with the rapid urbanization in douala, the economic capital of cameroon, the daily generation of waste has increased exponentially. the city as of early 2023 had a metro area population of “4,063,000 inhabitants up from 3,927,000 inhabitants from 2022, marking a 3.46% increase,” according to macrotrends.

when asked what has to be done to curb the perennial and ever-rising problem of waste in the city, binen said the residential population needs to adopt a culture of sorting waste.

“secondly, they have to define and respect dumpsites – while ensuring that non-biodegradable waste is recycled. just the simple habit of dumping the right type of waste, in the right place and at the right time, will facilitate the work of other artists and recycling firms – eager to transform waste,” he added.

in 2007, the intergovernmental panel on climate change (ipcc) said that recycling reduces greenhouse gas emissions by lowering demand for fossil fuels and increasing the use of recycled materials.

“efficient use of materials also reduces waste. material efficiency can be defined as a reduction in primary materials for a particular purpose, such as packaging or construction, with no negative impact on existing human activities,” the ipcc noted.

“without recycling waste, douala and any other town on planet earth will be gunning for trouble and a chaotic environment. so, we must recycle,” binen said.

a brief chat and interaction with ‘mama bouteille’ revealed some of the challenges faced by informal waste pickers in cameroon, an important sector in the waste-value chain, specifically that of single-use plastic bottles. 

shining a light on an important population

the world today is gradually gaining consciousness on the dire need to regulate the production of single-use plastics, design more environmentally friendly options, while developing and scaling solutions to the massive legacy that plastic pollution has already created. 

this is the reason why a recent gathering of world leaders and decision-makers at the unesco headquarters in paris led to an agreement that facilitate the adoption on international regulations on plastic waste management.

without any doubt, winning the fight against plastic pollution requires a holistic approach that takes into consideration new and effectively enforced policies and legislations; innovative solutions that address the root causes (producers), sensitization campaigns to change mindsets, and multiplying/scaling valorization initiatives that shed a light on the people working on this issue at the ground level. 

in the case of the valorization strategy, there is a need to pay attention to an important group of stakeholders: the informal waste pickers. 

informal waste pickers generally play a vital role in recovering waste materials known to have an intrinsic value from landfills, open dump sites, streets, and waterbodies. these workers are often considered invisible in society and operate under-the-radar for many people. however, they serve as an important bridge in the management of municipal solid waste such as plastic waste.

their intervention is usually at the end of the plastics value chain where they recover discarded plastic bottles, generally in exchange for small cash payments. some of the waste materials highly sought after by informal waste pickers include iron, aluminum, and plastics such as single-use plastic bottles among several other items. according to many local waste pickers, materials such as iron and aluminum have gained such high value, that they’ve become increasingly rare in the environment.

this is not yet the case with plastic waste, which explains why a great proportion of the over 600,000 tons of plastic waste generated annually in cameroon can be seen polluting seemingly every corner of the environment. despite the magnitude of the problem, however, informal waste pickers are chipping away at the problem in efforts to sustain themselves financially and clean up their environments.

the successes and challenges of informal waste picking

in yaoundé, mama bouteille has been able to feed and care for her family for over six years now thanks to money she earns collecting and selling discarded single-use-plastic bottles from different areas within the city, where bottles are known to accumulate in unimaginable numbers.

she has introduced about 10 other families to the business of collecting and selling plastic bottles, an achievement which she is proud of. according to mama bouteille, reflecting on the number of families she has been able to successfully introduce into the informal waste picking business has been a major motivational force for her to continue working to improve the living conditions around her neighborhood.

unfortunately, mama bouteilles complained of the health and safety challenges faced by her and other informal waste pickers who generally do not have the opportunity to undergo safety trainings, nor possess the necessary personal protective equipment. the lack of appropriate equipment sometimes leads to accidents in the course of their work and to the ingestion of particles and other pollutants arising from the waste piles. she expressed concern regarding the potential health impacts of their waste picking activities and also revealed that she had sustained a fracture incurred in the course of her work. 

according to an article post by the world bank, plastic waste not only surrounds us, but is present as microplastics in the air we breathe, inside glacial ice, in the fish we eat, in the water we drink and has been identified in human placenta by italian researches. another report in the journal, environmental science and pollution research, indicates that potential human health impacts of ingesting micropplastics can include asthma, obesity, respiratory disease, and cancer among others.

despite these challenges, there are numerous other solutions that are contributing to addressing the plastic pollution present in the environment. these include recycling solutions that transform plastic waste into different marketable products such as pavement, roofing tiles, pallets, plastic straps and lumber among other things.

however, collection and recycling rates still remain very low on a global scale. according to the organization for economic co-operation and development, only 9% of the plastic waste generated is recycled. this is a mind-boggling statistic which demonstrates the opportunity existing in this sector, especially for the informal waste pickers whose role in making these plastic waste available for recycling companies cannot be understated.

however, these workers require better working conditions and pay for their tremendous efforts to free our environment from plastic pollution.

one of these residents is eke cynthia, a cameroonian who was internally displaced by an ongoing secessionist war in the northwest region of the nation. the young mother remains troubled with the sanitary conditions of the island and the consequences for her one-year-old baby girl.

the poor quality of water and hygiene has made water sources endemic to diseases like cholera and measles. “it is a bit challenging for us here with the nature of the environment and everything. no access to drinking water, lack of medical personnel and poor transport and health facilities. i suffered during my pregnancy and had complications. now i fear for my child who is growing up,” said cynthia.

according to the world health organization, “between 29 october 2021 and 30 april 2022, a total of 6652 suspected cases including 134 deaths (case fatality ratio 2%) have been reported“ in the country. “we have been at the mercy of international non-governmental organizations like the clinton health access initiative and doctors without borders. if not for their prompt intervention the cholera situation would have been worse,” said pa mbi mathew, a community health worker.

cynthia and the rest of the islanders rely on rain barrels and the purchasing of potable water from the mainland, a two hour round trip by canoe. “in order to survive we buy water from tiko and douala in big drums of 200 liters and gallons of 20 liters and even mineral water in plastic bottles. the prices range from 400 fcfa (0.7usd) to 4000 fcfa (7usd) excluding transportation to and fro,” said cynthia. the high importation of mineral water makes matters even worse with plastic bottles littered everywhere which are often washed away into the ocean.

just when she thought things would be better in 2020 when the community tried digging a borehole, the project was met with failure. the project yielded only salty water, none of it was fresh enough to drink. so the next option was to make use of what she had, by collecting and conserving water especially during the rainy season.

cynthia also uses imported plastic mineral water bottles, but instead of dumping these bottles, she recycles them into pipelines to collect water and fill the rain barrels. “after our disappointment in 2020, we decided to use plastic bottles to collect water rather than litter the environment with no proper waste disposal system. when we collect the water it can sustain us for the whole year especially those with more barrels,” said cynthia. she is now more confident that her health and that of her daughter is assured as her environmental friendly measure to get drinking water reduces their vulnerability to waterborne diseases. 

the practice of recycling empty water bottles makes her community an example of sustainability and care for the environment. as an activist in the community, cynthia clings to a glimmer of hope that the government will come to their rescue as they continue surviving the storms.

leonette first recycled car tires in april 2020 as she sought to make a living for herself and her son. her first ever product was a set of chairs for her brother.

looking back on it today, she says the support from her brother created an impact that remains visible in her life to date. “back then, he too was not ready to get a big furniture, but he was ready to make some sacrifices. so he gave me his money so i could use it to try,” she explains.

she adds that the piece was “just a fancy thing” which spurred her on to try many more times before finally getting it right.

“each time i failed, i realized that i learned something new,” she attests.

from car tires to chic chairs

with a wealth of experience firmly tucked under her belt today, leonette can now trace the process in a few simple steps. she uses a simple but effective process to recycle the tires. she cuts them into pieces, washes them, dries them, and shapes them into different forms using glue, nails, and wires. she then embellishes them with bright colored pieces of cloth to make them more attractive. her clientele is limitless. as she jokingly puts it, every human needs a seat.

according to a study by pieter jan kole at the open university of the netherlands, published in the international journal of environmental research and public health, tires account for as much as 10 percent of overall microplastic waste in the world’s oceans. in countries like cameroon with less stricter measures sanctioning the recycling and dumping of waste and tires in particular, the figures are believed to be higher.

leonette is based in limbe, and the challenges remain similar to those of many other seaside towns. according to a study by din-louis georges, published in 2015, the municipal waste generation in limbe is estimated at about 7,300 tonnes per year (i.e. 20 tonnes/day).

the study also found that the waste composition in limbe varies by location, but the most common components are organic waste (40-60%), plastics (10-20%), paper (5-10%), metals (2-5%), glass (1-3%) and others (10-15%). much of limbe’s waste often finds itself in the ocean, causing harm to not just the sealife, but the town’s residents too. with a 28km shoreline, policing the waste dumping process is a near-impossible task for municipal authorities.

recycling for a greener future

but leonette is solving this puzzle, one tire after the other.

“the concept,” she explains, “is recycling used abandoned dirty tires that litter the streets. if i am working on an entire sitting room … i use eight tires.”

she confesses that the reasons for starting off a career in recycling are far different from the reason for staying in the business today. her words: “when i started, i did not know i was doing anything for the environment. i was just doing my art which was beautiful to my eyes…” she says, half laughing.

when she got informed of the benefits, her resolve to impact society, she reveals, only got stronger. she now produces not only chairs, but many other household equipment.

“i realized that what i was doing was more serious… i said there was no turning back.” over four years into the art, she is still going strong and with big dreams, dreams of leaving the planet better than she met it.

leonette is one of millions of cameroonians. but she is not just like any other. she is a warrior for the environment, creating a difference and forging the way for a better planet. 

you can connect with leonette on facebook or instagram.

the experience taught me a lot, as i noticed an increase in the amount of trash across the park and many dead fish washing ashore. this experience inspired me to read up on the history of the potomac and river pollution. in this story, i share with you my findings on river pollution and what we can do to help clean up our rivers.

producer: beverly ndifoin

assistant producer: glen amungwa

translation: dees translation service 

logistics manager: fai timothy 

i was five years old when i faced the quantity of my consumption as my mom had me partake in my first annual goodwill run, in an attempt to save my old clothes from an eternity in landfills. little did i know the rolling hills of clothes strewn about my bedroom floor awaiting bagging were a portion of the 60 million tons of clothing purchased annually. 

threading through history

thrifting, the process of purchasing donated and often used items, including clothing, is deeply rooted in my family. i interviewed my grandma, connie northern, to gain further insight into my family history surrounding thrifting. my grandma’s childhood recollections include a rag man who gathered waste fabric donations and communal thrift networks where her friends were able to donate their clothes to poorer peers. thrifting in the united states spans further back, with goodwill and st. vincent de paul beginning at the turn of the 20th century.

however, the mainstream introduction of thrifting was birthed from societal developments such as progressivism and populism, particularly from their focuses on morals and money, during the period between the first world war and the great depression. today, the global thrifting industry is worth an estimated $14.4 billion. 

my experience at age five grew into a passion for thrifting, although recently i have bought fast fashion due to the lack of affordable and accessible thrift stores in washington dc. i have been curious about the impact that thrifting has on combating fast fashion and clothing waste, given that in each second it takes you to read this, a garbage truck load of fashion waste is burned or piled onto already mountainous landfills. fast fashion consists of business strategies including mass over-production and the rapid cycling of products reflecting trends.

fast fashion and sustainability

fashion brands have shifted from four annual fashion cycles to 50 or more, producing 100 billion clothing items, 50 billion of which are disposed of, most worn only seven times. in addition to the accessible, trendy, and affordable nature of fast fashion products; global economic development, higher living standards, and social media has all been additional driving contributors to fast fashion by quickening the pace of fashion trends through platforms with widespread visibility. 

along with the growing presence of fast fashion since the 1990s, the production of fibers used to produce woven materials (textiles) used for clothes has also increased. these fibers include polyester and nylon, derived from fossil fuels, and contain microplastics that eventually make their way into our environment, according to sharon george, research chair at keele university focusing on green technology and environmental sustainability.

in addition to the waste and use of fossil fuels and plastic, fast fashion has broad environmental implications regarding land use, water consumption, and chemical pollution. production of natural fibers such as cotton causes deforestation, overgrazing, and leakage of chemicals and pesticides into the environment through the excessive agricultural practices employed to meet demand. 

back to jeans, the water consumption from the clothing industry is absurd, with estimates ranging from 20 trillion liters to 215 trillion liters annually, amplifying water scarcity and pollution. a variety of different chemicals are also utilized throughout the production process, with estimates of the total kinds varying from 8,000 to 20,000.

many of these chemicals pose risks to environmental and human health, exemplified by polyfluoroalkyl substances (pfas), which “are immune hazards to the human population,” commonly used for water-proofing or stain-proofing, all while contaminating the environment, water, and our bodies. despite the united states containing only 4.2% of the world’s population, we make up 14% of the world’s demand for textiles. the burden is most heavy on low-income countries producing the bulk of clothing products in high demand among the wealthy. 

of the 15% of clothing waste saved from disposal through donation, only one-fifth is sold to the public, while the rest is sold to industries to be repurposed, some ending up in landfills regardless. despite the risk of donated items eventually being disposed of, the social impacts of donating clothing are overall positive, including increases in employment opportunities often among marginalized populations, support for charity fundraising efforts, enhancing clothing circularity, and limiting waste. 

thrifting also combats waste and its environmental effects, exemplified by salvation army thrift stores preventing 82 million pounds of fashion waste from ending up in landfills in 2018 alone. public education is critical in limiting textile waste and its environmental impacts through increasing rates of involvement in the thrift economy. 

is thrifting the answer?

i am motivated by these findings to obtain most of my clothing through thrifting whilst in washington d.c. while it has been difficult to find a good thrift store in d.c. in my budget, i am determined to regain power in individualizing my consumption and doing what i can to combat the negative effects of the fast fashion industry while reconnecting with my artistic side. growing up in seattle among the seemingly infinite sea of goodwills, my favorite pastime was customizing thrifted pieces with materials such as bleach, acrylic paint, sewing, and more.

understanding the degree to which fast fashion consumption contributes to environmental degradation and the climate crisis incentivized me to further research accessible thrift stores, and i have found two of my favorites, value village and buffalo exchange just outside the city. a practice that grew from necessity has since developed into a desirable activity closely linked to individual identities. the thrift economy depends on consumers like myself and the other 16-18% of american thrifters, to both donate and consume, while incentivizing others to participate. partaking in the thrift economy provides a unique sense of satisfaction that is difficult to obtain from purchasing and discarding new items of clothing.