Local culture and community life
For a circular economy or recycling project to succeed, it has to reflect the values, habits, and daily realities of the people it’s meant to serve.
That means taking the time to ask yourself:
- What are the real challenges here?
- What do people believe and care about?
- Could your project have any unintended effects?
- What’s already working – and what isn’t?
Start by checking your assumptions.
When we launched our own programme in Lamu, we spent the first three months gathering community input. With support from the University of Portsmouth, we ran hundreds of surveys to understand local knowledge and attitudes about waste. This shaped our approach from the beginning – and we’ve kept learning and adapting ever since.
Changing behaviours often means tackling more than just awareness.
There may be gaps in infrastructure, policy, local services, or trust. Understanding these helps you target the right areas.
Use the right communication channels to speak and listen to your community.
In our case, that’s included town criers, barazas (local forums), art events, school talks, and site visits. Each one reaches people in different ways.
Work with respected local figures like teachers, religious leaders, youth organisers, or community chiefs. Their voices help build trust and connection.
Finally, make sure your model honours local traditions, respects cultural norms, and creates space for indigenous knowledge and collaboration.
