Generally, plastic waste has become a major challenge as it is mostly not disposed of properly. These plastics are mostly non-degradable and they pose so much risk to the public and the local climate. Improper disposal of plastic waste can also affect the environment and even lead to unwanted health outcomes that are associated with poor hygiene. Thet plastic waste menace has contributed to the gutters getting choked, the communities floods challenge when there is rain. Livestock, when grazing freely, end up consuming plastics waste scattered on the grass that they are exposed to, which affects their digestive systems and reduces their life-span. If waste is not disposed improperly as it is, it is often burnt with the smoke emitted contributing to not only climate change but polluting the air we breathe and affecting our health. Segregating of waste gives the opportunity to transform waste to resource which has overlapping economic and health benefits. Through the Climate Reality Project and in partnership with Dodowa Traditional Council we are working and organising the community to first know more about the plastic problem, learn about the using segregation to address the waste problem at source and then act in new ways to address it. As part of the project, we are donating bins with designated colours and with indications of the category of waste. We will also work with schools and students, capitalising on the energy and the influence of young people as a better way of transforming the waste problem we face. We're thrilled to have organised our first on-ground activity on the 19th of August 2023 as part of our Climate Reality Project. With a shared vision of building transformative change for the tripartite environmental crisis, we collectively organised as cleaner groups for an impactful clean-up and plastic disposal awareness in the Dodowa Community. Together with the community, we rolled up our sleeves and took action to tackle plastic pollution head-on. The clean up allowed us to do a plastic waste disposal audit, monitoring, education and advocate for better behavior/culture building. Gloria Agyare, A consultant and Campaigns Manager for Ghana Youth Environment Movement joined in as expert facilitator on plastic pollution and the proper methods of disposal, specifically through segregation. The sensitisation part of the engagement has a total of about 60 women participating including Market Queens. The recent community activity was impactful, consisting of a cleanup event followed by community sensitization on reduction in the use of SUPs and proper plastic waste disposal. At the end of the activity, the participants expressed the importance of the session given that they didn’t know the use of segregation especially in a farming community like Dodowa, how organic waste segregated at home can be composted for farm products. Our team's commitment and the enthusiastic participation of the Dodowa residents made this event a huge success. By joining hands and working towards a cleaner environment, we're not only enhancing the beauty of Dodowa but also delivering co-benefits for food, new jobs and building movements for a more sustainable future for generations to come.

There is a current problem of plastic waste disposal, where most households do not segregate their waste. This means that degradable waste is not disposed of separately from non-degradable waste and this is because most people are unaware about the implication of poor plastic waste disposal within the community. Therefore, by taking part in the Climate Reality incubator last year, the team came up with a project to promote the awareness of plastic waste and the negative implications if this waste is not properly disposed of. The team worked on a proposal with detailed activities including a community clean up exercise, community education and school sensitization activities on plastic waste in Dodowa. The team also came up with ways to spearhead conversations on plastic waste using digital means.