Nima | Gelephu
A group of 12 young entrepreneurs and young people from the gewogs of Gelephu, Samtenling and Dekiling came together for a community dialogue on waste solutions.
Organized by the Youth Advocacy Network Bhutan in Gelephu gewog on January 14, the community engagement program aimed to develop a local solution to waste problems in rural communities.
The program is also expected to empower young people and help participants identify waste-related issues and develop solutions to address waste-related issues.
Founder of Youth Advocacy Network Bhutan, Tshedrup Dorji, said involving community members to develop a solution to the waste issues will be sustainable.
“This will help achieve a waste-free society. We have designed the program in a way that encourages participation and lets them think about sustainable and workable solutions,” he said.
He added that common waste problems in Sarpang were communities lacking ideas on waste recycling, rubbish and people in urban areas transporting waste to open spaces in rural areas. “We train them to transform waste into reusable products. There are litter problems because people are less aware of the ecological impacts. “People should be educated to manage waste.”
He also claimed that the problems regarding waste in urban and rural areas were similar, such as insufficient waste collection services, waste collection facilities and segregation issues.
The program was first piloted in 12 gewogs in Sarpang.
The community dialogue on the waste solution started on January 13 in Gakidling gewog.
A press release from the network said that there are growing concerns in rural communities about increased waste in their locality and limited interventions in rural areas to consolidate their efforts in solid waste management.
“Facilitating a public dialogue in the community is crucial to educating, connecting and empowering individuals to participate in this process of behavior and policy changes that will help build a waste-free society,” he said.
Participants also had the opportunity to interact with social entrepreneurs in the country. They also engage in social media campaigns displaying a personal commitment to reducing waste.