Conflicts of interests with urban waste pickers as conditioning factors for sustainability upgrading in the recycling value chain of Córdoba, Argentina

Córdoba

Taller; Taller Gobernanza de la sustentabilidad en la bioeconomía; 2023

Instituto de Administración FCE UNC

In many developing countries, a large share of recyclable waste is collected by informal waste pickers as a means of subsistence. Recyclable materials are bought by private intermediaries and the Municipal State, which in turn sell them to the processing companies. Each of these actors has its own interest in the chain, which may come into conflict with others?.This article presents the results of our research on the recycling value chain of Córdoba, Argentina, with a focus on waste pickers. Drawing upon the concept of upgrading and stakeholders approach, a qualitative analysis is performed based on information from documentary sources and semi-structured interviews with 37 key informants of the chain. The objective is to identify conflicts of interest that waste pickers face with other stakeholders in the chain, and how this affects the possibilities of achieving sustainability upgrading, highlighting waste pickers? role in circular economy public policy and sustainable cities.