This is webinar #3 of the seven-part webinar series from Global Waste Lab, in partnership with be Waste Wise.
There is not enough money in waste management to waste it on the wrong technology. Across the world, waste projects have invested in impressive equipment, facilities or systems that later prove too costly, too complex, too dependent on external support, or poorly matched to local conditions. Appropriate solutions are not necessarily low-tech. They are fit for purpose. They work with local resources, skills, markets, behaviours and constraints.
They can be operated, maintained and adapted by the people and institutions expected to use them. Before investing in a solution, waste projects need to ask practical questions. Is there a market for the output? Is the feedstock available and suitable? Can the system be maintained locally? Is there reliable energy? Who will operate it? Who will pay for it? Will people actually use it? The session looks at why good ideas can fail when they are not locally appropriate, and how practitioners can make better choices by paying attention to culture, behaviour, maintenance, affordability, dignity and everyday use.
This session explores:
- why technically good ideas can fail in practice
- how to assess whether a solution is locally appropriate
- why affordability, maintenance, behaviour and dignity matter
- how to avoid creating new dependencies through technology choices