At the start of its eighth Annual Meeting in New York City, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) has launched The Foundation for Sustainable WasteResources.
CGI explained that the foundation was formed to address the growing health and environmental crisis caused by billions of tonnes of waste produced worldwide.
The foundation’s first effort will be to create an interactive map and data base of global waste sites & systems.
The organisation added that in developing regions, the most prevalent form of waste management is open dumping, with an estimated 50 per cent to 80 per cent of municipal waste budgets directed toward collection and only a fraction directed toward disposal.
To map out these sites, the foundation said that it will create an interactive global map of waste management systems that will identify key locations of significant amounts of waste around the world.
Focusing on these mapped out areas, the foundation then plans to bring together stakeholders in the waste management sector, including waste pickers, developers and governments, to create solutions and begin converting waste into valuable resources.
“Fair and sound waste management is a human right,” said Jill Boughton, who will serve as the foundation’s chief executive officer.
Boughton will commence her role as CEO on January 1, 2013 after retiring from a career at Procter & Gamble, where she most recently led a corporate-wide effort known as ‘Waste to Worth,’ which is dedicated to delivering on the company’s long-term sustainability goal of sending zero waste to landfill.
“By providing vital information to all stakeholders, The Foundation for Sustainable WasteResources hopes to catalyze improved waste management systems - and in doing so, stimulate lasting social, environmental and economic development,” concluded Boughton.
