Raising Awareness through Education
One goal of this project is to increase awareness of the issues surrounding burning trash and letting waste sit in the streets. Further, an important part of any project like this is getting locals involved and excited. Our education efforts will also introduce locals to the project, its goals, and show how they can lead this change.
In attempting to design a means by which to educate the people of Zanzibar on the waste management issue, it is important to consider which medium should be used. In many situations, pamphlets and flyers are distributed to communities to raise awareness of a particular issue. In Zanzibar, however, using such a method would only add to the waste problem at hand. Although internet is available on the island, many lower class inhabitants of Zanzibar do not make regular use of technology. Thus, this would be an ineffective choice as well. As a result, we are presented with limited options.
First, we could work with local schools to design a brief curriculum for students in primary and secondary education. The curriculum would provide a brief introduction to environmental awareness, discuss the effects of pollution and trash build-up, and explore ways to combat the trash issue at a local level. This model would focus on educating the younger generations in hopes of improving the issue steadily over time. The drawback to this approach is that it would not reach the older demographic, who are in a more likely position to create social change. It may also be difficult to work with local schools, and we cannot assume that they would have an interest in working with us. Even if they were to show interest, the language barrier would make things difficult, as most Zanzibarans speak Swahili. Additionally, we would need to learn more about Zanzibar’s education system and its structure in order to make a sound decision as to whether or not this would be effective.
Another option would be to find a way to post educational messages around Zanzibar without producing significant amounts of waste. This might be manifested in the form of billboards, public service announcements, or signs posted in areas where trash is most concentrated. This approach may serve to be more effective but presents significantly greater challenges. It would likely necessitate a collaborative effort and/or permission from the local government, which may be difficult to obtain. Again, the language barrier poses a complication here.
Finally, there is the option to hold community meetings to address the problem of waste management, raise awareness of its implications, and discuss potential solutions with village members. While in Zanzibar, Megan attended such a meeting (pictured right) with our contact, Sarah, and others that she was working with. This seemed to be somewhat helpful to community members. One major drawback to this solution, however, is the opt-in nature of the meetings. There is no guarantee that community members would attend and demonstrate sustained commitment or interest.
The analysis of these options demonstrates a need for further research. The initial questions we asked to our contact, Sarah, were focused mainly on the waste issue and a few other relevant aspects of life in Zanzibar. When looking into local education, it might be helpful to ask Sarah some further questions about the topic and use this to corroborate secondary sources such as what we can find online.