Grant project deliverable

Evidence based guidelines to integrate waste pickers into South African municipal waste management system

Grant holder: Dr M Samson

Institution: University of Witwatersrand

Grant: CSIR/IU/WRIU/2016/001

Duration: 1 April 2016 to 30 September 2019

Status: Complete

Project outline: There is increasing recognition that integrating waste pickers into municipal waste systems is critical to maximizing the economic, social and environmental benefits from revalorization of waste. Many South African municipalities are attempting to integrate waste pickers. However, they are doing so in relative isolation and policy development is not informed by these experiences. This research critically assesses current integration efforts in two South African municipalities – Johannesburg and Metsimaholo – to develop evidence-based guidelines for waste picker integration. The guidelines will facilitate more effective policy-making and implementation in this crucial area of municipal waste management.

»	Publication: Kadyamadare, G. and Samson, M. (2024). Thinking Households—How resident conceptualisations of waste, reclaimers and separation at source shape recycling practices. Urban Forum, 35:25-46.
»	Guidelines: (2020). Waste picker integration guidelines for South Africa
»	Briefing Note: Samson, M. (2020). Building from what Exists: Integrating Reclaimers into our Understanding of the Recycling Economy
»	Technical Report: Samson, M. (2020). Lessons from Waste Picker Integration Initiatives: Development of Evidence Based Guidelines to Integrate Waste Pickers into South African Municipal Waste Management Systems. Integrating reclaimers into our understanding of the recycling economy
»	Technical Report: Samson et. al (2020). Metsimaholo Case Study
»	Technical Report: Samson et. al (2020). Johannesburg Case Study
»	Publication: Samson, M., Kadyamadare, G., Ndlovu, L. and Kalina, M. (2022). ‘Wasters, agnostics, enforcers, competitors, and community integrators’: Reclaimers, S@S, and the five types of residents in Johannesburg, South Africa. World Development, 150.
»	Publication: Samson, M (2020). The political work of waste picker integration. In: The Informal Economy Revisited: Examining the Past, Envisioning the Future. Edited by Martha Chen and Françoise Carré. London: Routledge.
»	Presentation: Samson, M. (2020). Lessons from Waste Picker Integration Initiatives in South Africa
»	Publication: Samson, M. (2019). Whose Frontier is it Anyway? Reclaimer “Integration” and the Battle Over Johannesburg’s Waste-based Commodity Frontier. Capitalism Nature Socialism, DOI: 10.1080/10455752.2019.1700538.
»	Publication: Sekhwela, M.M. & Samson, M. (2019). Contested understandings of reclaimer integration – Insights from a failed Johannesburg pilot project. Urban Forum (2019), 1-19.
»	Dissertation: Shogole, M.P. (2019). ABAGEREZI: Embodiment and separation at source studied through the lens of everyday informal street reclaiming in Johannesburg. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Ntuli, Z. (2019). Local Realities and Political Histories: The Waste Pickers in Sasolburg and their Struggle for Transformation in the Waste Management System of South Africa. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Guya, MJ. (2019). Local State Practices of Informal Waste Picker Integration: The case of the Metsimaholo Local Municipality, Sasolburg. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Dladla, N. (2018). The Construct of State Practices: Excavating Municipal Relationships with Waste Pickers, the case of the City of Johannesburg. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Pholoto, L. (2018). Theorizing the Relations between Space and Waste: Residents’ Insights on Recycling Practices. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Chidzungu, T. (2017). An Investigation into the Experiences of Zimbabwean Migrant. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Kadyamadare, G. A. R (2017). Assessment of waste separation at source by residential households as a tool for sustainable waste practices: a case study of the City of Johannesburg. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Maema, K. (2017). Determining practices and power relations between street reclaimers with a view to how they control their spaces. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Mahlase, M. (2017). Walking to eat in the street of Alexandra-Analysing the effects Jozi@work has on street reclaimers. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Mokobane, A.M. (2017). Gendered Mobility: Investigating how gender influences the Physical Mobility of Four Street Reclaimers in Johannesburg. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Phakoe, K. (2017). Reclaimers Organising the Future. How organizing influenced reclaimers’ understanding of integration and their relationship with Pikitup. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Sekhwela, M. M (2017). The policy and practice of reclaimer integration in the City of Johannesburg. Master’s Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Molefe, K. (2016). The Rise in Backyard Shacks and the Implications for Solid Waste Management Services Provision in Bram Fischerville. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Ndlovu, L. (2016). Household wasting practices in Orange Farm (Ext. 2) – A window into improving Pikitup separation at source and waste management programmes. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Ntuli, Z. (2016). Invisible Citizens and Wasted Potential. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.
»	Dissertation: Pholoto, L. (2016). Impacts of Pikitup’s integration and partial work formalization on informal reclaimers: The case of Johannesburg inner city. Honours Thesis. Johannesburg: Wits University.