Headnote
ABSTRACT
Introduction: The disposal and management of solid waste is a growing problem, closely related to the current environmental situation. The text contextualizes the fact in time and space, to then focus on the department of Tolima. At the University of Ibagué, a solidarity research project that is being developed has led to a review of the situation of deep disorganization that is experienced in this regard, with serious regional repercussions. The research proposes and demonstrates in a practical way how it is possible to overcome or at least attenuate the negative evolution of the problem,aiming for the area to be self-sufficient in the medium term in the management of solid waste, and to later become a model for other regions within the country.
Objective: The present research aims to propose and practically demonstrate how the problems of waste management can be mitigated.
Theoretical Framework: The theoretical framework of the research is based on the historical evolution of recycling, the influence of environmental movements with contributions such as those of Rachel Carson, and international frameworks such as the Zero Waste International Alliance (ZWIA) and the 3R model (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle). In the Colombian context, regulatory references such as the National Code of Natural Resources (1974) and Resolution 2184 of 2019, which guide the circular economy, are highlighted. Likewise, approaches to responsible consumption and the local perspective are incorporated, integrating local action with the global dimension of the environmental crisis, thus providing a solid conceptual foundation for the research.
Method: The research "Complete Cycles for Life (3C)" employs a participatory and solidarity-based methodology, framed within action research. It is characterized as demonstrative and applied, articulating academia, community, business, and the State to close the cycle of transformation of plastic and biodegradable waste. Its development relies on the methodological axis of the 3C (Awareness, Knowledge, and Commitment), promoting processes of awareness-raising, knowledge exchange, and collective commitment. Through training sessions, practical recycling tests, and prototype design, the aim is to generate a replicable model of self-sufficiency in solid waste management.
Results and Discussion: The results show that the solidarity project facilitated the creation of recycling prototypes and strengthened community awareness. The discussion highlights how the collaboration between academia, business, government, and community enabled progress in closing the waste cycle, although limitations related to the lack of technical infrastructure in the territory remain.
Research Implications: The research has practical implications for the circular economy, environmental education, and public management by proposing a replicable waste management model. On the theoretical level, it strengthens approaches that integrate awareness, knowledge, and commitment, contributing to the study of sustainability and environmental policy.
Originality/Value: This study brings originality by addressing solid waste management from a solidarity-based, participatory, and demonstrative approach, integrating academia, community, business, and the State in the search for sustainable solutions. Its value lies in the possibility of replicating the model in other territories, contributing both to the literature on sustainability and circular economy and to professional practice in environmental management, by offering applicable alternatives that strengthen social awareness and innovation in recycling.
Keywords: Waste Management, Separate or Recycle, Environmental Awareness, Solidary Commitment.
RESUMO
Introdução: A disposição e o manejo de resíduos sólidos é um problema crescente, intimamente relacionado com a atual crise ambiental. O presente texto contextualiza esse fato, no tempo e no espaço, para depois se concentrar no departamento de Tolima, Colômbia. Na Universidade de Ibagué, está sendo desenvolvido atualmente um projeto de pesquisa solidária que leva à revisão da profunda desorganização que se experimenta nesse sentido, com sérias repercussões regionais, nacionais e, naturalmente, globais. A pesquisa propõe e demonstra, de maneira prática, como é possível superar ou ao menos atenuar a evolução negativa da problemática, apontando para uma amostra replicável na autossuficiência no manejo de resíduos sólidos a médio prazo e para que, mais adiante, consiga se tornar modelo para outras regiões do país.
Objetivo: A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo propor e demonstrar de forma prática como é possível mitigar a problemática do manejo de resíduos.
Referencial Teórico: O marco teórico da pesquisa fundamenta-se na evolução histórica da reciclagem, na influência dos movimentos ecologistas com aportes como os de Rachel Carson, e em marcos internacionais como a Zero Waste International Alliance (ZWIA) e o modelo das 3R (Reduzir, Reutilizar, Reciclar). No contexto colombiano, destacam-se referências normativas como o Código Nacional de Recursos Naturais (1974) e a Resolução 2184 de 2019, que orientam a economia circular. Do mesmo modo, retomam-se enfoques sobre consumo responsável e a perspectiva local, que integra a ação local com a dimensão global da crise ambiental, proporcionando assim uma base conceitual sólida para a pesquisa.
Método: A pesquisa "Ciclos Completos para a Vida (3C)" utiliza uma metodologia participativa e solidária, enquadrada na pesquisa-ação. Caracteriza-se por ser demonstrativa e aplicada, articulando a academia, a comunidade, a empresa e o Estado para fechar o ciclo de transformação de resíduos plásticos e biodegradáveis. Seu desenvolvimento apoia-se no eixo metodológico das 3C (Consciência, Conhecimento e Compromisso), promovendo processos de sensibilização, intercâmbio de saberes e compromisso coletivo. Por meio de jornadas de capacitação, testes práticos de reciclagem e desenho de protótipos, busca-se gerar um modelo replicável de autossuficiência no manejo de resíduos sólidos.
Resultados e Discussão: Os resultados mostram que o projeto solidário facilitou a criação de protótipos de reciclagem e fortaleceu a sensibilização comunitária. Na discussão, destaca-se como a articulação entre academia, empresa, Estado e comunidade permitiu avançar no fechamento do ciclo dos resíduos, embora persistam limitações relacionadas à falta de infraestrutura técnica no território.
Implicações da Pesquisa: A pesquisa tem implicações práticas na economia circular, na educação ambiental e na gestão pública, ao propor um modelo replicável de manejo de resíduos. No plano teórico, fortalece abordagens que integram consciência, conhecimento e compromisso, contribuindo para o estudo da sustentabilidade e da política ambiental.
Originalidade/Valor: Este estudo traz originalidade ao abordar o manejo de resíduos sólidos a partir de uma abordagem solidária, participativa e demonstrativa, integrando academia, comunidade, empresa e Estado na busca por soluções sustentáveis. Seu valor reside na possibilidade de replicar o modelo em outros territórios, contribuindo tanto para a literatura sobre sustentabilidade e economia circular quanto para a prática profissional em gestão ambiental, ao oferecer alternativas aplicáveis que fortalecem a consciência social e a inovação na reciclagem.
Palavras-chave: Manejo de Resíduos, Separar ou Reciclar, Consciência Ambiental, Compromisso Solidário.
RESUMEN
Introduccion: La disposición y manejo de residuos sólidos es un problema creciente, de estrecha relación con la crisis ambiental actual. El presente texto contextualiza tal hecho, en tiempo y en espacio, para enfocarse luego sobre el departamento del Tolima, Colombia. En la Universidad de Ibagué, se adelanta actualmente un proyecto de investigación solidaria que da lugar a la revisión de la profunda desorganización que en tal sentido se experimenta, con serias repercusiones regionales nacionales y, por supuesto globales. La investigación propone y demuestra de manera práctica, cómo es posible superar o al menos atenuar la evolución negativa de la problemática, apuntando a una muestra replicable en la autosuficiencia en el manejo de residuos sólidos a mediano plazo y a que, más adelante, logre ser modelo para otras regiones del país.
Objetivo: La presente investigación tiene como fin proponer y demostrar de manera practica como se pueden mitigar la problemática de manejo de resíduos
Marco Teórico: El marco teórico de la investigación se fundamenta en la evolución histórica del reciclaje, en la influencia de los movimientos ecologistas con aportes como los de Rachel Carson, y en marcos internacionales como la Zero Waste International Alliance (ZWIA) y el modelo de las 3R (Reducir, Reutilizar, Reciclar). En el contexto colombiano, se destacan referentes normativos como el Código Nacional de Recursos Naturales (1974) y la Resolución 2184 de 2019, que orientan la economía circular. Asimismo, se retoman enfoques sobre consumo responsable y la perspectiva local, que integra la acción local con la dimensión global de la crisis ambiental, proporcionando así un sustento conceptual sólido para la investigación
Método: La investigación "Ciclos completos para la vida (3C)" emplea una metodología participativa y solidaria, enmarcada en la investigación-acción. Se caracteriza por ser demostrativa y aplicada, articulando a la academia, la comunidad, la empresa y el Estado para cerrar el ciclo de transformación de residuos plásticos y biodegradables. Su desarrollo se apoya en el eje metodológico de las 3C (Conciencia, Conocimiento y Compromiso), promoviendo procesos de sensibilización, intercambio de saberes y compromiso colectivo. A través de jornadas de capacitación, pruebas prácticas de reciclaje y diseño de prototipos, se busca generar un modelo replicable de autosuficiencia en el manejo de residuos sólidos.
Resultados y Discusión: Los resultados muestran que el proyecto solidario facilitó la creación de prototipos de reciclaje y fortaleció la sensibilización comunitaria. En la discusión se resalta cómo la articulación entre academia, empresa, Estado y comunidad permitió avanzar en el cierre del ciclo de los residuos, aunque persisten limitaciones asociadas a la falta de infraestructura técnica en el territorio.
Implicaciones de la investigación:La investigación tiene implicaciones prácticas en la economía circular, la educación ambiental y la gestión pública, al proponer un modelo replicable de manejo de residuos. En el plano teórico, fortalece enfoques que integran conciencia, conocimiento y compromiso, aportando al estudio de la sostenibilidad y la política ambiental
Originalidad/Valor: Este estudio aporta originalidad al abordar el manejo de residuos sólidos desde un enfoque solidario, participativo y demostrativo, integrando academia, comunidad, empresa y Estado en la búsqueda de soluciones sostenibles. Su valor radica en la posibilidad de replicar el modelo en otros territorios, contribuyendo tanto a la literatura sobre sostenibilidad y economía circular como a la práctica profesional en gestión ambiental, al ofrecer alternativas aplicables que fortalecen la conciencia social y la innovación en el reciclaje.
Palabras clave: Manejo de Residuos, Separar o Reciclar, Conciencia Ambiental, Compromisos Solidario.
1 INTRODUCTION
To ensure its survival, the human species is currently facing numerous environmental challenges, in a world that itself has deteriorated to extremes never seen before. Particularly, in relation to the consumption and waste of goods that land provides, the damage is immense, unconscious or ignored and most likely irreversible. Everything that humanity uses, processes and discards, is part of cycles that, when not warned, can be incomplete, diverted or broken; consequently, it is urgent to accept responsibility directing the fate of the discarded, to allow matter to flow properly, regenerate and that process contributes to the care of the environment, and therefore to the desired well-being of human beings.
In order to face, or sometimes hide, the threat represented by the environmental consequences of our irresponsible behavior, in recent years and increasingly, the terms: human well-being, environment, sustainability, sustainability, recycling and sanitation, among others, are present in everyday communication; but they hardly pass from the word, to the honest understanding of concepts and less to action, as it should be.
In the context of COP 16 held in Cali, Colombia, in October/November 2024 - the largest attendance since 1995 - although the central theme was biodiversity, the urgent need for better waste management was reiterated. Precisely in this environment of the teachings of such an important event, this work is supported, product of solidarity research and applied locally, which seeks to raise awareness in each and every person reading, share knowledge motivating curiosity towards the numerous possible recycling processes, and finally promote commitment to this elemental way of practicing ethical and solidarity behavior for life.
2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
2.1 SPATIOTEMPORAL CONTEXT
The idea of recycling can be traced back to pre-Christ times. In this regard, the Environment and Society Association maintains that:
"In Plato's time, 400 years B.C., they were recycling. Archeological studies have shown that much of the garbage generated in homes was reused to make other utensils when raw material resources were scarce" (para. 2).
Similarly, the AAS states that the Japanese pioneered paper recycling, as by 1030 AD they were storing paper for reuse, which is confirmed by the existence of old documents made of recycled paper.
In the context of increasing pollution and environmental degradation, during the 1960s, environmental movements in developed countries gained strength, with the notable influence of the scientist Rachel Carson. In his play The Silent Spring (Silent Spring), published in 1962, Carson first drew attention to the fatal fate of planet Earth if human activity did not transform. Among the main innovations of his work are the integration of scientific-environmental aspects with social ones and the interdisciplinary approach, which more than half a century later still seeks to consolidate (American Chemical Society, 2012)
Subsequently, in 2003, following a conference organized by the Swiss institute EMPA (Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology), the International Zero Waste Alliance (Zero Waste International Alliance - ZWIA) was created. This organization promotes alternatives to landfills and incineration, highlighting the social and economic benefits of considering waste as resources, employment or business opportunities (ZWIA, 2003).
The fundamental rinci les of the ZWIA include:
1. Turning waste into inputs or resources for local production and the formation of a sustainable society.
2. Redesign products and manufacturing methods to eliminate waste, emulating natural processes and closed circuits.
3. Promote innovation in resource conservation and production methods.
4. Promote international collaboration between actors with common interests.
Today, the alliance has more than 40 partners, one per country (or per state in the case of the United States). In Latin America, the Lixo Zero Institute in Brazil, the Zero Waste Alliance in Costa Rica and the Zero Waste Alliance in Uruguay stand out. In addition, agencies from countries such as Nepal and New Zealand are involved.
In relation to growing global concern about solid waste management, the World Bank (2012) published the What a Waste report, warning that the volume of solid waste would double by 2025. The report also pointed out that the higher the income and urbanization, the higher the generation of solid waste. At the time, the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) produced half of the global waste, while Africa and South Asia were responsible for the smallest share.
According to the same report, in 2012, the world's cities generated around 1.3 billion tons of solid waste annually, with the expectation that these numbers will double in the next two decades, especially in lowand middle-income countries. Globally, waste-management costs would rise from $205.4 billion annually to more than $375.5 billion by 2025. While estimates for 2020 stood at $252 billion, the World Bank warned that the most significant increases would be in lower-income countries (more than five times) and middle-income countries (more than four times).
The origin of the Three Rs concept (reduce, reuse and recycle) is vague. However, it has been widely disseminated and recognized on international stages, such as the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the G8 Summit in 2004 and the 2005 Assembly of Ministers, in which the United States, Germany, France and 20 other countries participated. One of the organizations that has most promoted the concept is Greenpeace, an international, politically and economically independent entity dedicated to the defense of the environment and peace, and which seeks to promote sustainable practices such as responsible consumption.
2.1.1 Plastic
Over time, the industry has evolved in the search for new resources for the production of goods, both necessary and unnecessary. Thus, from a polymer present in vegetation, in 1870 an American scientist obtained celluloid, a material that facilitated the production of useful elements in everyday life. Then, in 1907, Belgian scientist Leo Baekeland produced the first multi-purpose, high-strength synthetic plastic, known as bakelite, also called the thousand-use material. Its slogan was demonstrated by the boost this product gave to the industry during the second industrial revolution. Baekeland chose as the symbol of his invention the mathematical sign of infinity, alluding to a perpetual motion of production (see Figure 1).
The idea of continuous motion, of permanent and endless flow, had previously been represented by August Ferdinand Möbius in 1858, with his celebrated band of Möbius. This symbol, paradoxical but significant, has been associated with the idea of recycling for nearly 50 years.
The word plastic comes from the Greek plastikós ("moldable"), appropriate to designate this material due to its high plasticity and ability to deform without breaking. These properties made it an extremely versatile industrial material, which surpassed the characteristics of bakelite. However, in less than 200 years of existence, plastic has invaded and flooded the planet. Unfortunately, its impact is not innocuous, as it has become one of the main factors of pollution of soil, water and living beings. In this way, such an attractive product for industry has entered the natural life cycle - including the human life cycle - but with profoundly negative consequences.
In December 2024, a press release published by El Espectador reported that, according to the United Nations (UN), around 430 million tons of plastic are produced worldwide each year. Despite multiple warnings about its impact, output is expected to double over the next 20 years. In 2021, for example, 139 million metric tons of single-use plastic waste was generated, equivalent to more than 13,700 Eiffel towers. The report added that every day, some 2,000 truckloads of plastic end up in rivers, lakes and oceans, affecting more than 800 species of birds and fish, 90 per cent of which have plastic particles in their stomachs. The risk to human health was also warned, as microplastics - fragments smaller than 5 mm - can lodge in the body through inhalation or dermal absorption, accumulating in vital organs (El Espectador, 2024; UN, 2024).
The most alarming evidence of plastic waste growth is the so-called Plastic Island in the North Pacific, also known as the seventh continent. This phenomenon was discovered in 1997 by oceanographer Charles Moore, and by 2023 it was three times the size of France, or about 1.6 million square kilometers.
2.1.2 How can this reality be addressed in Colombia and, specifically, in Tolima?
Colombia is an extremely rich country, not only in quantity of natural resources, but in diversity of them. Broadly speaking, it has six very different ecosystem zones, which, seen in greater detail, offer about 30 of the 38 Life Zones established by Holdridge in 1971; that is, what any country or region of the world would envy. Unfortunately, there is not enough awareness among Colombians of the magnitude and significance of such wealth, distracted in the immediacy of the accumulation of money, from the alienation of territories or natural assets, without noticing the immense polluting effect that this can produce (IGAC, 1977).
Returning to the central issue, since the National Constitution of 1991, Colombian legislation and regulations formalized -relatively- the human relationship with the environment. However, it cannot be ignored that a significant precedent is the National Code of Natural Resources and the Environment (Decree 2811 of 1974), which has been an example for other Latin American countries. In Part IV, entitled Environmental preservation standards for non-natural resource elements, Title III states:
Article 36. The final disposal or processing of waste should preferably be carried out by means of which: (a) the environment and human health are prevented from deteriorating; (b) the components of the waste are reused; (c) new goods are produced; (d) soil is restored or improved.
Article 37. Municipalities must organize appropriate garbage collection, transport and disposal services. The provision of this service by natural or legal persons under private law will require authorization in accordance with the requirements and conditions established by the government (Decree 2811 of 1974).
Colombia has abundant legislation that usually does not go as far as detailed in a precise regulation, and even less to respond to regional or local particularities derived from the wide national biodiversity. As for waste management, the country has had a clear national public policy for 50 years that is not applied, either because of lack of awareness, knowledge, will or commitment.
In recent years, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MADS) issued Resolution 2184 of 2019, through which, as of 1 January 2021, the color code for the separation of waste at source began to apply: white, black and green. This standard is part of the National Strategy for Circular Economy, established in the National Development Plan of that time, and also establishes the rational use of plastic bags, still in force, but not fully formalized. Experience has shown that colors are just a greenwashing look that soothes - or rather deceives - the consciousness of warehouses, producers, and buyers. Consequently, it coexists with situations that become customary until losing their importance and disappear due impact. Such are the cases of Figures 2 and 3.
Unheard of and shameful, but true, as illustrated in Figure 2. The event took place in Cali, Colombia, and although there were representations from more than 150 countries, no one protested about it, despite being an environmental event. Another example of the problem is the case of Figure 3, illustration of the place of disposal of waste in the food area of one of the countless establishments of a well-known multinational conglomerate of Colombian origin, currently owned by El Salvador. And it's not that the installation is in the works: it's been more than a year with such a look. Perhaps the administration of that trade has recognized that, without popular conviction, color differentiation is useless.
With regard to the three colors, it is unquestionable that, depending on whether the site is rural or urban, residential or commercial, temporary or permanent, the proportions of waste types are not the same, nor are the possible collections or final destinations. Without condemning the use of colors, there is still a great deal of work missing on communicating their meaning and planning for their proper use.
However, not everything is so negative. Proudly, the Montessori Municipal Educational Institution of Pitalito, in the department of Huila, bordering Tolima, was awarded the best in the world at the World's Best School Prizes 2023, in the environmental action categoryAnother positive example, among many specific initiatives, is that of "Natuma", a research project of the Jorge Tadeo Lozano University of Bogotá that aims to transform corn waste into biodegradable materials
Moving to a larger scale, and in search of an articulated solution, the country has the socalled Environmental Chamber of Plastic, formed as a representative guild of the Colombian plastic industry in 2016. One of its most recent products is the booklet Knowledge and Sustainability (2024), in which number 2, on plastic satanization, highlights this idea: "The problem is not the plastic itself, but the poor management and disposal by humans"
In particular, Tolima is one of the most diverse departments and, therefore, its environmental management must be deeper and more thorough than in other regions. The simplest logic suggests that, in rural areas, organic waste - the easiest to recycle under the guise of composting - remains there, where it is fully usable, thereby reducing the consumption of chemical fertilizers or insecticides for agriculture. Unfortunately, the reality is not this. The general population (not only the urban population) mixes everything as "garbage", deposits it in plastic bags (more garbage) and even, in an unusual way, through long routes polluting the air by fuel, the soil by inadvertent spills and demanding unnecessary work, within the Tolima that "garbage" is periodically transferred to the capital Ibagué, from 16 or 17 municipalities. This means that the information is not up to date in the entities in charge, nor is it consistent with the media: the number of depository municipalities varies between 10 and 19 (see Figure 4).
According to the two-dimensional look that is usually given through the available cartography, for example between Cunday and the "sanitary" fill of La Miel, located near the village of Picaleña, there would be 107 km; but when observing the variations that in the relief represents a journey in ups and downs, brakes and starts, with the consequent effect on CO2 emanation, the journey is longer, more polluting and also traumatic (see Figure 5).
Optimistic statistics say that 17% of total annual waste is recycled in Colombia. This is all the more serious in Ibagué, as demonstrated by the case of the aforementioned landfill, where the waste from almost two dozen municipalities in Tolima exceeded its capacity a few years ago. Additionally, based on a flawed and hasty decision, the environmental authority Cortolima has extended the license for two decades.
Honey is one of eight landfills in Tolima, none of which work properly. Another alarming case is that of the Palmalta or Payandé landfill in the municipality of Natagaima, which receives waste from 13 municipalities in the southeast of the department and which, at the end of 2024, was the cause of disturbances and conflicts between the population, specifically the indigenous population, and the public administration. The solution to this serious problem will have to address the lack of both administrative and civic culture in decision-making for consumption, as well as for the separation, reuse and recycling of waste of various kinds, and the additional negative impacts.
The few plastic and other non-organic wastes collected and separated in the region end up being packed and transported to the three main cities of the country (Bogotá, Medellín and Cali), due to the fact that in the department of Tolima there are no mechanisms or technical tools to complete a true recycling cycle. This process is therefore compounded by the pollution involved in transport and the unnecessary use of fuel and vehicle wear. Likewise, labor that would be much better employed in production processes, whether agricultural or everyday items at low cost, which would additionally discourage the very extensive import of all kinds of elementary goods.
Yes, as illustrated in Figures 6 and 7, many mistakes are made in relation to the disposal of waste, but also in terms of how to suggest or guide users through the facilities offered to them to dispose of it. From the catastrophic results of the sum of these constant and increasing events - which seems innocent or harmless and therefore goes unnoticed - comes the motivation for the ongoing project.
2.1.3 The solidarity project as a response
In the context of the necessary University of the University of Ibagué, the project of solidarity, demonstration and participation (academy, community, business and State) aims to integrate science, technology and education to materialize the closure of the cycle of waste transformation of two types: plastic and biodegradable. Its results are projected in three dimensions: 1) sustainable development, 2) social welfare and 3) economic growth. This is achieved through demonstrative and participatory recycling processes in which the effectiveness and convenience of closing the cycle is exhibited and disseminated, controlling it from beginning to end. That is, to achieve the process for new products for local consumption, avoiding the unnecessary mobilization of both inputs and finished products in the opposite direction.
During the gestation of the project, the aforementioned "3R" were initially reviewed, finding that they have multiplied over time. Thus, versions of 5R have been proposed, adding repair and rethink; of 6R and even 10R: reorder, reformulate, reduce, reuse, remanufacture, recycle, revalorize energy, redesign, reward and renew. All of these stem from the traditional three - reduce, reuse, and recycle.
Faced with this panorama, which is somewhat complex to address, we chose to take a look more directed towards the mentality and motivation than the actions of the actors in relation to the problem. Thus arose the motto of the "3Cs": awareness, knowledge and commitment.
2.1.4 Awareness
A lot of information flows every day, but in general, it is not processed and ends up being integrated into the conversation without greater awareness of what it implies. In the case at hand, the term recycling goes through a similar process and is reduced to the simple action of separating two types of waste.
It is difficult to find a single set of three-colored canecas in which citizens actually set out what they would expect there, as shown in Figure 2. To internalize the urgent need to reduce the volumes of waste that go to polluting landfills (not sanitary), colors are not indispensable, but simply awareness: understanding and deep conviction of the necessary and vital separation of waste, in each and every one of the depository inhabitants.
2.1.5 Knowledge
Strengthening and strengthening that awareness of the desirability of reducing useless waste requires greater and better knowledge about the possibilities, paths, processes, destinations and the most positive results of proper separation.
On the other hand, being a solidarity approach, the most relevant is the articulation and exchange of knowledge from different aspects, such as those offered by the diversity of origin in terms of the social group that each member of the research project represents.
The exchange of knowledge has been surprisingly positive and enriching, both for the team and for nearby groups, who are encouraged to continue spreading these ideas in their cores of everyday life.
2.1.6 Commitment
When it is possible to consolidate awareness and knowledge, commitment naturally arises. Each member of the team has internalized what they have shared and learned, demonstrating their willingness to assume responsible waste management wherever they are. Likewise, it is committed to spreading the motivations and achievements of the project, understanding that sustainability requires social multipliers.
Disclosure also involves a process of raising awareness among those who receive the information, motivating them to take small actions which, when cumulated, generate a progressive positive effect and wider dissemination (Leff, 2014).
3 PROGRESS AND CONCLUSIONS
As part of the formal commitment of the solidarity research project, the so-called Training Days, which bring together representatives of various social groups for the exchange of knowledge and experiences, are carried out.
The materialization of the closure of the recycling circuit requires, in addition to a clear orientation of the trajectory, implements and tools. Ekoclub, representing the business sector, already had a plastic mill, but on the occasion of the project focused its effort on a machine to melt and press the plastic resulting from the grinding.
Initially, the machine is powered by electric energy, but with the aim, in the medium term, of switching to biodiesel obtained from the processing of pruning waste collected at the University of Ibagué and in the neighborhood. For this transformation, the contribution of another member of the group, representative of the academy, who works on the design of the tool for this purpose, is counted on. In this way, the result of the exercise will be comprehensive, articulating the benefits of two wastes, inputs that would otherwise go, indiscriminately mixed, to the filling of Honey.
Work focused on true recycling is required worldwide, but as the term glocal, coined at the end of the last century, suggests, it is important to keep acting locally without losing sight of the global. Thus, taking the global crisis as a framework, local efforts are promoted on the issue of optimal waste management.
In this sense, in addition to the following training days and tests for the dosage of necessary inputs in the production of biodiesel, an event is already agreed and scheduled to share this work and expand its scope, with the Association for the Development of Tolima (ADT) a private association of the business sector that promotes sustainable and equitable development from the region. This entity promotes the articulation of strategic initiatives and the mobilization of public, academic, social and business capacities to respond to the needs of the territory and strengthen its potential, improving the quality of life of citizens.
To organize waste management, aspects such as the social, cultural and regional context must be taken into account, as well as responsible consumption habits in the different age groups of society, with particular emphasis on the Alpha (born from 2010), and their perception towards the care of the environment.
It is definitely worth continuing with such projects, with a scientific-academic basis, that bring together and link the representation of various social groups and facilitate the materialization - whether on a small scale or quantity - of what is discussed, learned and proposed.
References
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