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IWWG Experts forum on
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Contact: Luis F Diaz

 

Aims

The purpose of the Task Group on Developing Countries (TGDC) is to serve as the primary technical resource in the IWWG on key issues associated with waste management in developing countries. The primary objectives of the TGDC are: to develop, coordinate, and disseminate timely information on institutional, technological, economic, environmental, and research and development issues in the field of solid waste management, specific to developing countries.
For this purpose the TGDC promotes the following activities:

  • organization of meetings and training courses
  • participation in IWWG conferences, through the organization of specific technical sessions;
  • conduct of discussions and seminars through the Internet
  • establishing working relationships with other national, international, and multinational organizations;
  • promotion of capacity building at educational institutions in developing countries in matters related to solid waste management
  • identification and development of acceptable waste management practices, systems, and technologies from information developed through applied and basic research
  • seeking acceptable institutional approaches to international public policy issues affecting the management of wastes in developing countries.

The TGCD, chaired by Dr. Luis Diaz of CalRecovery, Inc. (e-mail: ludiaz(AT)calrecovery.com). has developed two major programs in an attempt to increase IWWG activities in Latin America:

  • A series of conferences on Waste Management in Latin America (GRAL) to be co-organized every two years with key institutions of the region. The first GRAL 2009 conference is scheduled to take place in Quito, Ecuador from June 23 to 25, 2009
  • The creation of a regional network of professionals involved in solid waste management with the aim of setting up discussion groups and rendering information rapidly available.

Members

Here is a complete list of members and their corresponding institutions:

  • G. Desalegn, Institute of Waste Management, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
  • L. Diaz, CalRecovery Inc., USA
  • S. Diener, Department of Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (Sandec) at EAWAG (Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology), Switzerland
  • M.C. Lavagnolo, IMAGE Department, University of Padova, Italy
  • R. Linzner, Institute of Waste Management, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
  • A. Mansoor, Water Engineering Development Centre (WEDC) at Loughbourough University, UK
  • Y. Voegeli, Department of Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (Sandec) at EAWAG (Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology), Switzerland
  • C. Zurbrügg, Department of Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (Sandec) at EAWAG (Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology), Switzerland

Outputs

The TGCD recently completed a monograph entitled “Waste Management in Developing Countries” authored by L. F. Diaz, L.L. Eggerth and G. M. Savage, with input by different members of the task group. The monograph is published by CISA Publisher, located in Padova, Italy, and can be ordered on-line through the CISA Publisher website www.cisapublisher.com

Contact person:

Luis F Diaz
CalRecovery Inc.
2454 Stanwell Drive
Concord, California 94520 - 4811, USA
Phone: 1 - 925 - 356 - 3700 x 103
Fax: 1 - 925 - 356 - 7956
E-Mail: ludiaz(AT)calrecovery.com

NEWS

The Developing Countries Task Group has recently been devoting a considerable amount of time and effort in training and promoting proper and sustainable solid waste management activities in Latin America and the Caribbean.  The first major activity in recent years dealt with the establishment of the “Gestión de Residuos en America Latina” (GRAL) or Management of Solid Wastes in Latin America activities.  This initiative will consist of congresses and courses to be conducted in the Latin America Region.  The first major Congress took place in Quito, Ecuador in June 2009.  Participants of GRAL 2009 took the opportunity to organize a network of Spanish speaking professionals involved in the solid waste sector.  The network currently is under development under the direction of personnel from the Universidad del Valle, in Cali, Colombia.  At the conclusion of GRAL 2009, it was decided to schedule the next major congress (GRAL 2011) for June 2011 in Cali, Colombia.  The event is being co-organized by two major Universities in Cali, Universidad del Valle and Universidad Autonoma de Occidente (UAO). Members of the IWWG are encouraged to participate in this event.
In addition, GRAL 2009 served as the platform to announce the launching of yet another journal sponsored by the IWWG “Alpa Sisa”, which will be published in Spanish.  One of the Editors-in-Chief of the journal is Dr. Luis F. Diaz, former Editor-in-Chief of Waste Management and Chairman of the DC Task Group.  In addition, the Advisory Group of the Spanish journal is composed of members of the IWWG.
Other activities in Latin America included organization and participation in a Fair in Quito, Ecuador called Verde Ecuador.  The fair was organized to promote tourism in Ecuador but included a series of presentations dealing with solid waste management.  Members of the Task Group took part in the event, which was held in May 13-16, 2010.
The Task Group was also involved in the organization of an International Congress dealing with the “Management of Solid Wastes in Protected Areas”, which will be held in Santa Cruz, in the Galapagos Islands, on October 21 and 22, 2010.  It is expected that this congress will attract hundreds of experts on environmental management of protected areas on these islands. This agreement was possible after IWWG offered his support to the Galapagos Life Recycling Project, a recycling project that was developed to help the Galapagos Islands in the management of their solid waste by segregating the waste into different materials and using the materials to manufacture different products.
Finally, the task group partnered with colleagues from Morocco (Moroccan Association of Solid Waste) and proposed the organization of a session for the Annual World Bank Conference on Development Economics to be held in Stockholm, Sweden in May – June, 2010.