The deeper I dive into my work and into this community, the harder it is for me to recommend a solution that I can truly see being successful without being impeded by all that encompasses daily life in Uganda.

In my opinion, when working with citizens of developing countries, well all people for this matter, the biggest hurdle to jump is the varying levels of knowledge between citizens. This challenge is magnified in developing countries where formal education is far from a guaranteed right and even further from normalcy. It’s important for me to note the relevance of this issue in my work because quite frankly, it is the cause of the whole waste management issue.

Bugembe Town has a population of 64,000 people, which makes it nearly impossible for a research team of one (me) to sample properly in the short time I am here. However, with the help of 4 translators, I was able to sample 110 citizens in one day, regarding their interactions with waste. I use the word “help” loosely because my translators were made up of people who have no background in research and I’m honestly still not sure if they understood my survey questions completely in order to translate properly, which is a different issue that I’m dealing with.

From my data collection came many expected results, but also many answers that have the ability to hinder my research deeply. For example, during the survey, 67% of my respondents said when they see waste on the street they pick it up and “dispose of it properly in a waste bin”. The only problem with that is there are ZERO waste bins on the streets in Bugemebe, but I guess they could be associating “waste bin” with the garbage heaps that pile on the sides of streets, but I am more inclined to chalk this up to fear because many believed these surveys were a propaganda ploy by the Town Council.

The other problematic responses came with the questions, “Are you willing to pay/ pay more for waste collection from the Town Council (government)?” and “Do you believe it is possible to reduce the amount of waste you produce?”. Fifty- one percent of respondents responded to the first question with a “yes”, while 70% of respondents believed it was impossible for them to reduce their waste production. These two responses have the ability to not only dictate my research outcomes negatively, but show the lack of knowledge the community has regarding waste and more importantly navigating the bureaucracy and corruptness of their local and national government in Uganda. In a nation where the average weekly income carry over (I don’t know if this is the right term or makes sense, but I just mean the amount of money they have after taxes and necessities) is 3,000 UGS (less than $1 USD), I have over half of my sample, albeit a small sample, willing to pay money that they just simply don’t have. This would allow the government to continue to tax its residents dry, but obviously not nearly as hard enough to receive enough money to improve its waste management system because there is just simply not enough money in anyone’s hands.

Not to mention, that they can EASILY reduce the amount of waste they produce, but this requires sensitization, knowledge production and time that is rightfully trumped by the time and work ethic they need to focus on providing for themselves and their family. On top of that, of the 30% of respondents who believed they could lower their waste production, said they could do so by burning their trash more frequently, which everyone does here and is common in most developing/ over-populated countries. Burning waste is not necessarily harmful, except here in Bugembe, and in most of the Nile region of Uganda, they do not separate their waste which leads to the burning of extremely hazardous and cancerous materials including plastics and metals. I can also point out in the past ten years, Uganda has experienced and influx of birth defects, which coincides with a growth in population and subsequently a growth in waste production (waste burning). But I obviously can’t say that is the reason for more birth defects and health issues, but is something that definitely needs to be researched, if it isn’t already.

So simply, as of right now, the data I have collected for my research can be used as propaganda to allow the local government to continue neglecting the safety, health and financial security of its citizens for literally an extra handful of US coins per week.

I was going to write about myself a little bit, but I’m not going to lie putting this information onto digital paper drained me and further supported the fact that my personal journey should be put on the back burner for a while.