keeping in mind the racial, and socioeconomic impacts, i’m proposing that the market start by eliminating the use of plastic grocery bags. as a participant, an observer, and a researcher, i believe there are four different possible first steps that could be taken toward eliminating all plastic grocery bags from the market.

so, if you’re in syracuse, please join me in promoting this idea, and if you’re somewhere else please consider that you could push for the same change in your own community. 

informal jobs are those that lack adequate documentation, and is prevalent in developing countries because of few formal, income-generating employment opportunities. in a way, the informal economy is beneficial because it is an alternative to income. however, there are cases when the market has threatened people’s well-being due to a lack of regulation. thus, it can perpetuate poverty and instability. for this reason, gfi advocates for the integration of the informal sector with the formal sector.

since 2009, the government of peru has recognized recyclers for their activity and promotes the industry’s formalization and integration into the solid waste management systems. gfi currently has a project in peru called peru recyclers leadership initiative. gfi partners with ciudad saludable, an organization in peru that is committed to sustainable development and with significant professional experience in the design, management, implementation, and evaluation of projects. together, they are launching a business development module and leadership academy to help recyclers in peru advance in the formal sector.

gfi now works with ciudad saludable to ensure that the recyclers move to the formal sector successfully by strengthening the value chain. the emphasis is on improving occupational health and increasing economic income through the provision of trainings, uniforms, tools, and other resources.

the work that gfi does is important because they work with partners who are in the communities. gfi does not try to put its name in the spotlight but rather pushes for the local partners to obtain recognition. this is a sustainable approach to programmatic work because the ones who will continuously work on this initiative is ciudad saludable not gfi.

additionally, this project serves to form a long-term source of employment for people in peru. this will give stability to people and will reduce poverty in peru over time, which is related to the first sustainable development goal.

places for improvement in the area include income equality between men and women, livable wage, and increasing social benefits such as health insurance for employers. people should have a stable and reliable source of income to better their livelihoods. addressing the informal sector is an important step in reducing poverty especially in developing countries. this will help move the un sustainable development goals forward.

sitting together under the shade of the school yard tree, she and i spent time coloring, writing, reading and getting to know each other through the experiences that led us each to the wakiso district. life was not always as easy as it seemed in the rural outskirts of nansana, because in the katanga slum, anything goes.

she stood with pride to announce she is a child of thread of life, a program started to teach the women of katanga sewing and bead making skills, as well as the importance of financial stability. we discussed the moments that made us the happiest, the most upset and the curiosities of the worlds we have come to understand.

over time, through our conversation, i slowly understood that parvin was not like many of the children at her academy. katanga is a harsh environment for a child to spend her first and most crucial years of life. there is no garbage disposal system here, one arrives to the area atop a trash pile so tall it personifies the division between poverty and severe poverty. there exists a trash-laden channel to nowhere along an edge of the slum where waste water from neighboring kampala is deposited. the cramped maze of housing structure conceals every possible means by which a child may develop a mental handicap. ugandans use repurposed gasoline containers to collect city runoff water from an inch of pipe sticking out from mud-carved steps; the only source of water for the slum. the most upsetting aspect is that katanga is far from being an isolated example of impoverished living.

while one must applaud the acquisition of water from a consistently available flow and good sense to boil it, this should not be held as standard. on a farm in southern uganda there is an underground well, that along with seasonal rains, facilitates the farm’s needs. it provides the tenants with clean water with which they can drink, clean their hands, cook lunch and wash the resident toddler. underground wells might be a practical solution for the people of uganda who can afford them; the slums of bangladesh or remote areas of sudan might not have the environmental or financial capabilities to entertain such solutions.

what if families in these water depreciated areas were given a card that indicated, based on easily recognizable characteristics, the amount of water a family or individual needs per day?

cards would contain information such as how many people are reliant on the card; an individual verses a family of five. cards would also indicate need based on a calculation stemming from the average amount of water it takes to cook staple foods in a given region, and the minimum amount of water individuals should consume per day. these specifications would allow the card to be tailored to the needs of a reliant family or the individual. this information of course would all come from professionals in the nutritional or medical field in the region where this system is being implemented.

families and individuals with the card should be able to go to a central location where community members are paid by the government to provide the service of collecting, boiling and distributing water. the service will be provided twice or more times a week in an effort to allow all families the opportunity to congregate at the water distribution location. each card holder will be documented whenever they receive water, to ensure one group or individual is not receiving another’s ration.

this system would not only provide more jobs to the community, it will help families get the water they need. families or individuals with the card will also be applying a new kind of responsibility to their daily life through preservation of the card and collection of rationed water. if we can help individuals gain more access to better water, we can aid their health, education about hygiene and illness, teach responsibility and aid in satiation. this system can be implemented wherever there is a need; there is likely to be water sources in a given region; its collection and distribution might be the difference between a healthy population and one riddled with illness.

overall, the government supports the health of its citizens by paying citizens to provide the service as well as handle the creation and distribution of cards. citizens gain a new source of income while aiding the families and individuals who utilize the opportunity to obtain water. citizens who have a card are able to better provide for their personal or family’s understanding of hygiene and physical health.

through working with governments and interested parties, these water projects can be implemented within the foreseeable future in any area deprived of clean water. we have the ability to immediately change the lives of children like parvin on a global scale. in time, we can cultivate healthier communities; the solution need not be complicated, just acted upon.

being an iowan, these were not statistics i was accustom to hearing about d.c. it wasn’t until a trip to d.c. last summer that i was introduced to such startling facts about our nation’s capital. with all the doom and gloom that comes with such statistics, i was also provided with an experience to see first-hand an organization who seemed to be providing a light at the end of the tunnel for these dreary statistics.

that organization was d.c. central kitchen. d.c. central kitchen was started in 1989 on the foundation of “using food as a tool to strengthen bodies, empower minds, and build communities.” this is no ordinary kitchen though. they are able to provide 5,000 meals per day to 80 locations, such as homeless shelters and nonprofit organizations, at little or no cost to help nourish those in need (1). so you may be asking yourself, “what makes d.c. central kitchen so special?” well, that is exactly the point!

d.c. central kitchen is so much more than a food shelter. this “kitchen” is a multifaceted organization trying to combat a number of issues such as food waste, poverty, sustainability, etc. they have established numerous programs that help to tackle such issues. one of the main programs is a culinary job training program to help teach and provide culinary skills to those who are homeless or unemployed. this program creates food from their food recycling program, a program that in one year recovered 791,325 pounds of food and turned it into healthy, nutritious meals. meals created by the culinary job training program are distributed to locations including schools, feeding 6,300 meals to low-income children through the school food program. they are also able to prepare quick snacks which can be found at corner stores in d.c.’s food deserts, the main goal of the healthy corners program (1).

at the d.c. central kitchen, they are doing so much more than just putting healthy, nutritious meals on an individual’s plate. they are taking action towards some of today’s biggest issues facing society by working to educate, empower, and support the most sensitive populations. not only that, but their model has created positive impacts on the d.c. region like (1):

• $1 spent on the culinary job training program, produces a “re-investment” of $3.50 through saved taxpayer dollars (on jail, shelters, welfare, etc.) and new tax revenue (by increasing employment)
• approximately $950,000 prevented in food waste through the food recycling program
• placed 90% of culinary job training program graduates in just 3 months
• investing $155,000 in more than 20 local farms or cooperatives

after learning all of these new facts about d.c., i was invigorated by such work. but the d.c. central kitchen’s work hasn’t stopped yet! after seeing such impressive results and all of the positive impacts from their programs, d.c. central kitchen has made it possible for everyone to be involved in their mission to change the statistics. through the campus kitchens project, we are all being challenged to help start our very own d.c. central kitchens in our backyards (2). the model is multifaceted, yet customizable giving you have the flexibility to work within your means. if you too are feeling excited and motivated by such work, i encourage you to make a difference in your community!

sources:

1. “dc central kitchen.” dc central kitchen. n.p., n.d. web. 16 apr. 2015.
2. “student-powered hunger relief – campus kitchens.” the campus kitchens project student-powered hunger relief comments. n.p., n.d. web. 16 apr. 2015.
3. “united states census bureau.” district of columbia quicklinks from the us census bureau. n.p., n.d. web. 16 apr. 2015.