Thanks to a group of artists and their colorful drawings, waste pickers in South Africa have become an integral part of the urban scene in Johannesburg, and in a country that lacks recycling, according to Agence France Press (AFP). The waste pickers drag their heavy wheeled trolleys filled with cans, and plastic or carton covers, to collect food waste from the bins deployed across Johannesburg and deliver them to the non-official recycling centers.
“One of the biggest challenges is just for residents to make eye contact, to build some sort of relationship,” said Tamzyn Botha, one of the artists behind the initiative. Painting the bags is a "fun way to create some sort of dialogue,” she added.
Johannesburg's artists hope their initiative could make visible their contribution to fighting climate change. Kneeling on a pavement nearby, artist Nathi Nzima sprayed purple paint onto a bag. “It's great, it's not every day we get to do stuff like this,” he said, explaining that he wanted his work to “have meaning”.
For artist Naledi Chai, spray painting the bags is about “solidarity with informal recyclers, and a very clever and progressive way to create art that moves” and that "can go from city to city.”
According to the African Reclaimers Organization, there are an estimated 6,000 such unofficial workers in Johannesburg alone, the largest city and economic hub of South Africa, a country reeling under a 34.4 percent unemployment.
The reclaimers crisscross the city day and night, and some motorists even consider them a risk because their trolleys, lacking reflectors, are not always easily visible. Selling waste to recycling centers, the waste pickers known as “reclaimers” make few dollars only for living.
“They do a lot of work, they save the city a lot of money, but they don’t earn so much,” Chai said, after drawing a bright yellow face on one bag. “This is the realistic way that I can help,” she added.
