A community-government dialogue on household waste reuse and recycling will contribute to the government awareness rising and incorporation of these issues into municipal waste management plans. Finally, the production of an electronic guide on household waste reuse and recycling will ensure awareness rising of rural communities and school children across the country, while the dissemination of success stories on demo projects through networking forums and web-resources - their replication elsewhere, including all priority landscapes.
A community-government dialogue on household waste reuse and recycling will contribute to the government awareness rising and incorporation of these issues into municipal waste management plans. Understanding of the concept of social enterprise will help local communities’ set-up such facilities and apply for start-ups, which are provided by a number organizations, including CSRDG. Finally, the production of an electronic guide on household waste reuse and recycling will ensure awareness rising of rural communities and school children across the country, while the dissemination of success stories on demo projects through networking forums and web-resources - their replication elsewhere, including all priority landscapes.
Notable Community Participation
As far as one of the target groups of the action are community level eco-clubs (mainly school based), the youngsters, especially from higher classes will be actively involved in project activities. In total number of eco clubs participating in the action would be 50, meaning that approximately 250-300 young people will participate in different project activities: awareness building trainings/seminars; designing and implementation of environmental micro projects, youth forums and camps.
Promoting Public Awareness of Global Environment
The communication strategy is very important component of the action and it envisages:
- regular presentation of project results and successes through available media means (local TVs, radio and printed media)
- Utilization of social media through web and face book pages developed at CSRDG (web page of Community Development Resource Center – CDRC.ge)
- Discussion of project results and success stories at wide format meetings and forums (Community Leaders Annual Forum)
- Summarizing and evaluation of project results on final presentation event
Capacity - Building Component
The main activiteis of the action involve high particiation of community members at all stages of project implementation.
In particular, the measures include:
- Informing the population on project implementation and progress on every important stage of the action
- Identification of local community leaders and their involvement in project activities
- The identification and compilation of community concerns in the regard of waste management by community groups and organizations itself and addressing them towards local Governments
- development and implementation of micro projects tailored to already identified local needs
Gender Focus
The main goal of the project is to reduce or eliminate the practice of open burning of household/municipal wastes and associated releases of unintentional PoPs, through promoting low-cost environmentally sound waste management practices and technologies at the household and/or community level. Women are active householders in Georgia and it is very important to involve them in the project implementation. That’s why it is very important to provide women with the information about the importance of elimination of the practice of open burning. The community must to know that the open burning practice is very danger to human health.
The project’s gender section speaks about women’s involvement in the project activities, especially in training awareness but is very important to improve women’s role in the changing of the abovementioned harmful practice.
Inovative Financial Mechanisms
The project has a separate activity for knowledge sharing and replication. More specifically, project successes and lessons learned will be shared with various CBOs across the country through annual community forums and an eco clubs forum. More than that, all knowledge products including training modules and electronic guidebook will be posted on CSRDG’ and CDCR’s web-sites and facebook pages. Apart from this, each specific meeting, training or other public event will be used to deliver key messages on the project successes. Efforts will also be made to provide a local TV and/or radio coverage to the events and significant project milestones. Furthermore, all lessons learned and success stories will be captured and included in the final report as well as presented at the project closing ceremony. Following specific knowledge products will be produced under the project:
1. community/ecoclubs training module on open waste burning and their low-cost alternatives;
2. training module on social enterprises as means for solving environment issues;
3. electronic guideline/booklet on adverse health and environmental impacts of household open waste burning and low-cost sustainable alternatives to them;
4. brief project success stories, either in written form or as audio-video material.
Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods
Waste reuse and recycling approaches, including production of compost, bio humus, mulch, etc., which the project will promote, are low-cost, environmentally sound technologies/practices that individual households, schools or villages can apply easily. In addition to environmental benefits and low cost, they can bring about economic benefits, since they are effective organic fertilizers and can be used for the improvement of soil productivity and thus, can increase harvest and improve local livelihoods.
Understanding of the concept of social enterprise will help local communities’ set-up such facilities and apply for start-ups, which are provided by a number organizations, including CSRDG.
Project Results
1. Target communities, including school children in Kakheti, Samegrelo and Guria are aware of adverse health effects of household waste open burning and feasible low-cost alternatives to this harmful practice;
2. Target communities including school children apply in practice environmental sound, low-cost practices and/or technologies as alternatives to open household burning;
3. Local governments of target communities are well-aware of household/municipal waste open burning issues and make efforts to incorporate measures against such practice into municipal development and/or waste management plans;
4. Rural communities, including youth across the country are aware of the lessons of the project, its successes, harmful effects of household waste burning and its low-cost alternatives.
more specifically:
50 community target groups established and functional
trainings/seminars on waste reuse and recycling and on micro-grants planning and management and on social enterprises was organised for community target group or/ and eco club members
13 demo projects on composting, mulching, bio humus production and reuse of plastic and rubber wastes, with around 6 projects implemented in protected areas and/or in their support zones
50 eco clubs participate in the project and One 2.5-day Eco clubs forum was organised with participation of 59 Eco clubs members
One electronic booklet/guidebook on on adverse health and environmental impacts of household open waste burning and low-cost sustainable alternatives to them;
Posting of success stories at CDRC web-site and face book page
