Zero Waste Cities in the Developing World: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Currently, our consumption-driven society contributes to the production of a large quantity of waste every day in urban environments. Low recycling rates pressurize city authorities to handle waste more sustainably. Despite this pressure, waste management systems have paid little attention to the urban planning processes, compared to other sectors like energy or water. Consequently, there are perceptible significant gaps regarding waste management, and therefore, strategic waste management and an overly sustainable consumption model are necessary, particularly in developing countries that are quite vulnerable to the vagaries of climate change. This chapter presents a detailed comparison of waste management and zero waste attempts in Middle Eastern cities, notably Qatar, and in some contexts in sub-Saharan Africa, where interesting case studies may be found. Exploring these examples is instrumental to emphasize the challenges and opportunities in the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa, thus, to offer insights on the role of zero waste, as part of a circular economy in the achievement of the sustainable development goals in developing countries. This chapter would also contribute to investigate the relationship between localization and zero waste strategies, henceforth how localization plays a key role in circular economy.