Informal waste pickers collect an astounding 60% of the world’s plastic for recycling. Notably, waste pickers have traditional expertise in waste management that can considerably improve the effectiveness of EPR, particularly at the grassroots level. By 2025, India’s waste management market is predicted to be worth approximately $14 billion, with a 7% annual growth rate. However, as waste becomes a more valuable resource in a growing commercial waste management market, traditional waste pickers—who collect and sell recyclable materials from streets, bins, and landfill sites—are being squeezed out of jobs they’ve been doing quietly for years.
This webinar looked at India’s vast army of informal waste collectors and their critical role in decreasing the environmental impact of the country’s massive waste mountain, as well as growing concerns about waste pickers’ livelihoods and broader initiatives to improve their working and living conditions.