Waste Pickers: A Gendered Perspective
Millions of people—a large number of them women—make a living collecting, sorting, recycling and selling valuable materials that someone else has thrown away. Vital actors in the informal economy, they provide widespread benefits. In many countries, waste pickers supply the only form of solid waste collection. They contribute to public health and lower municipalities’ costs of solid waste management. This box within the UNDP publication "Powerful Synergies: Gender Equality, Economic Development and Environmental Sustainability" explains why despite the growing strength of women in the waste picking profession, persistent barriers to their women's participation in their representative organizations necessitate a gendered approach.
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