PLANNING PHASE
The project was completed over the months of May, June and
July 2013.
In collaboration with SWaCH, a local co-op that provides front end waste management services, the first task was to decide what system would be best for waste reduction at Sangam World Centre, a large conference facility with accommodation and campsites in Pune, India.
It was decided that composting would give a better result than a vermiculture system (worm farms), due to the large amount of wet (food) waste produced, as well as the hot Indian summers that are a challenge to worms.
Photo: The rejuvenated compost pits at Sangam
The scope also allowed for a community partner to join the project and increase the potential for composting methods to be more widely taken up at a local level.
SOS Children's Villages were chosen for several reasons - They are located across the street from Sangam and would make monitoring visits very easy. They have a large amount of wet waste that is produced every day (feeding 3 meals a day to over 300 children).
BUILDING PHASE
In May 2013 work started on rebuilding the Sangam centre's composting pits. Existing vermiculture pits were emptied then rebuilt with a rock and coconut shell bed. SOS Children's village had existing composting pits that were in need of great repair and this was begun.
To enable Sangam’s waste management system to start fully functioning, new colour coded bins for waste segregation were purchased; red for dry waste, blue for wet waste and cream for office paper.
STAFF TRAINING
Training Sangam’s residents and local staff in the new system through a 'family meeting' and demonstration ensured that everyone correctly segregated waste into the bins, the first step to effective composting.
It is hoped that for local staff this will become habit and they will continue the practice at home once they receive the proper bins from the City government.
SWaCH
SWaCH
SWaCH held training with 25 Sangam staff/gardeners and several community participants (Irish Girl Guides and Volunteers) to discuss the waste system in Pune, what issues waste pickers face and ways we can conserve and improve our environment.
SWaCH also ran a 3 hour practical workshop on composting to start using the newly restored composting pits. The kitchen ladies now understand how their work effects what the maintenance team does in the composting pits.
Photo: Staff training exercise to understand how to separate all the different types of waste into different bins.
COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION - a bottom up approach to change.
As one of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts world centres, Sangam frequently host learning opportunity camps for children. In July 2013, Sangam hosted an Environment Camp that involved Irish Girl Guides, local Pune Guides and many community partners.
Involving school age children in environmental training encourages them to take new practices back into the home - a bottom up approach to change.
During this Camp, the Irish Girl Guides taught others about waste segregation, water conservation, composting, making pledges to our environment, a fashion show from recycled materials and a field trip to the local Bio-Gas plant.
Most importantly, all participants made an Action Plan from their learning at the Camp that will educate fellow school students in conserving water and planting more trees.
Irish Girl Guides also conducted training with SOS Children’s Village, teaching the housemothers how to properly segregate waste and how to use their new composting pits. They involved the children in environmental learning through gameplay and making environment pledges via craft.
Photo: The local Biogas plant - a field trip undertaken by kids on the environment camp.
PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK FROM THE ENVIRONMENT CAMP
‘We too learn how the waste food turns to a very very useful thing. We learn many games related to environment and we enjoyed a lot.’ – Rhea, Nivedita Guide
‘We learnt that our garbage can be useful in many ways, to which conserve our environment.’ –Anuj, DES School
‘When I see people are avoiding plastic bags and keep environment clean then I will know I have been successful.’ –Anil, SV Union Scout
WHAT NEXT?
The composting system at Sangam is now underway and they are hoping to purchase a wet/leaf waste shredder to speed up composting times.
The project funding from Footprints allows SWaCH to support both Sangam and SOS Children’s Village for the next year in operating their new composting system.
Sangam will also support SOS Children’s Village in operating their new composting system, both technically as well as socially - ensuring that the house mothers and children continue to segregate their waste properly to maintain their new compost system.
With the implementation of Sangam’s Environment Club, environmental initiatives will be prioritised within the Sangam family and the local community.
FURTHER INFO:
Learn more about Swach by watching this video.
What SOS Children’s Village did to learn about their environment - see video
Watch video of what happened during the Irish Girl Guide Discover Your Potential event.
Click here for photos of the Sangam Environment Camp (Facebook).
Aims and objectives of the project
The aim of this project is to reduce Sangam’s environmental impact in the local community and to contribute to the mitigation of climate change in Pune City.
It will do this though the achievement of these main objectives:
- Educating Sangam’s 18 Indian staff members in climate change issues and home waste management.
- Learning about the vermiculture (worm farming) process and how to care for a vermiculture system.
- Construction of a functioning vermiculture system at Sangam World Centre.
- Vermiculture construction at one of Sangam’s community partners with assistance from Sangam’s newly trained Indian staff.
- Encouraging vermiculture construction in communities around Sangam and in the homes of Sangam’s local staff.
- Using the worm farm compost in the seven and half acres of gardens at Sangam. (If more compost was created than the centre could use, it would be given to local staff for use in their small pots that grow chillies, curry leaves etc.)
Photo: The gardens at Sangam World Centre will benefit from the worm farm compost
Project costs include:
- Building and operating costs of 2 vermiculture systems. One at Sangam World Centre, one at a community partner.
- Purchase of materials to encourage correct home waste management and vermiculture within our local community.
- Field trip to learn about the waste management system of Pune City.
- Training for Sangam’s Indian staff about home waste management and vermiculture from local waste management partner, Swach.
Photo: The old Sangam worm farm which will be replaced as part of the project and include staff training to ensure that the farm continues successfully after it's built.
Environmental management in Pune
This monsoon, Pune received only a small percentage of what the city usually receives in rainfall every year and the city corporation doesn’t provide enough skips for garbage removal. We have identified the need and motivation to learn about environmental issues and how to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Swach, a local co-op that provides front end waste management services to the citizens of Pune, and the local government authority are working hard to encourage householders to separate their waste into wet and dry rubbish. This is the only level of separation required in the household in Pune City.
Sangam World Centre want to support the separation of waste initiative by being an example of the practice within the Centre encouraging our Indian staff, guides, friends and guests to participate in this process.
By educating our Indian staff about the process, we hope they will do the same in their household and educate and inspire their communities to do the same.
Swach has also been consulted in their work with vermiculture and vermiculture systems. We will be using their expertise in training Sangam’s local staff and building a new vermiculture system for use at Sangam.
Photo: Sangam volunteers working with Swach staff on waste separation processes.