What are some ways to reduce environmental health risks in local communities?

I work in the circular economy industry where we work on creating recycling solutions for end of life e-wastes, battery wastes, plastic packaging wastes and glass. During the early days of the organization, our baseline surveys revealed the reality of e-waste management in India in 2016. More than 95% of E-waste was being downcycled by informal waste processors in Seelampur & Mustafabad. They were using crude methodologies and chemical treatments in open environment to extract the metals such as gold, silver, copper and aluminium which are embedded in the e-waste. A health studies of these communities revealed how unscientific processing of e-waste has deteriorated the health of young men and women aged 21-31 causing toxic health hazards.

One thing I found helpful within communities is to get their buy inn and let them drive and lead projects. Officials must provide support. Guide and shape up the process. Ensure that the goals are achieved.

Education can include: a) Promotion of Sustainable Lifestyles. Encourage sustainable practices among community members, such as energy conservation, responsible consumption, and waste reduction. Small lifestyle changes can have a cumulative positive impact on the environment. b) Emergency Preparedness. Develop and communicate emergency preparedness plans for environmental disasters such as floods, wildfires, or chemical spills. Ensure that communities are equipped to respond quickly and effectively to minimize health risks.

Therefore when Karo Sambhav entered the market to solve the growing challenge of e-waste, it was absolutely important to address the the above mentioned concern of unscientific recycling via awareness and gaining the trust of the informal workers. In order to create a lasting impact, it was important to gain their trust in a way that they shouldn't feel intimidated of loosing their source of earning a living. One solution that worked in our favor was to live amongst these waste aggregators and have frequent interactions with them, trying to understand the why, what and how of their day-to-day activities and slowly sharing with them alternate methods of doing these tasks in an environmentally friendly way.

Another intervention that we saw fit was to find ways of formalizing the informal sector, introducing them to better methods of dismantling e-waste and supporting them in registering their place of business as a govt. recognized company. Once their company's were officially registered, we were able to add them to our vendor list, thereby opening a business opportunity for these waste aggregators and also supporting them with on-time payments via UPI. Some young generations of the family owned waste aggregator businesses agreed to come on-board and this was a promising start.

The first step is to access the situation. That is, get to know what the situation looks like then secondly the communities will be orientated and educated towards avoidance of the risk and coping with the situation if need be.

Advocacy for Environmental Justice: Advocate for environmental justice, ensuring that all communities, regardless of socioeconomic status, have equal protection from environmental hazards. Address disparities in environmental impact and access to resources.