Lebanon has a decades-long history of challenges managing household and business waste. The year 2015 is remembered as a crisis moment marked by large-scale public protest. The present is marked by a continuation of pollution from waste burning, trash in and near waterways, and landfill overflow. Unpleasant smells and photos of sanitation workers and children sifting through open dumpsites to earn a few dollars a day are part of many people’s collective social experiences. 

The images (and reality) of waste harming the environment and our physical and mental well-being are not easy to think about or discuss. Through my project in the Bridges to New Horizons program, I kept this vision: “The waste crisis of Lebanon does not have to be permanent . . . What kind of Earth, what kind of life, are we leaving for future generations? The future begins with the choices we make today, and every household and institution can become part of that change . . .”

The good news is there is an emerging movement of municipal-level innovations to address Lebanon’s waste management challenge. It’s grounded in “subsidiarity” - the idea that public service decisions and responsibilities should be handled at the most local level possible. Municipal authorities and community members are more ideally suited to shape and deliver waste management processes than distant, centralized business and government institutions. Notably, in many communities, waste management consumes most of the municipal budget. Increases and improvements in locally driven solutions and efficiency should reduce costs and free up investment for other community development projects. This is an appealing goal given the intense, multi-year economic crisis that Lebanon has faced. 

Unfortunately, small and medium-sized municipalities face particular barriers to progress given the cost and logistics of new waste management systems. This is true of the Bsharri municipality where I was serving as a municipal leader when I became a participant in the Bridges to New Horizons program. Throughout the program and since, I have been actively engaged in a new Bsharri Municipal Council installation of 160 new waste containers throughout the town, color-coded red for recyclable waste and green for organic waste. The council’s effort has been influenced by the leadership, project management, and peacebuilding ideas and tools available to us through the program. 

The most adaptive change that we’ve made is to be much more intentional about building bridges with community stakeholders. Our Municipal Waste Management Committee consulted with the Bsharri District Union of Municipalities representing 22 villages and local environmental organizations, schools, and businesses. These conversations for listening and collaborative decision-making informed our inputs to the project’s Logical Framework (Log Frame) and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), strengthening the project.

Community connections we made resulted in more practical, realistic approaches in the local context, with a positive peacebuilding benefit. Research shows that - especially on a limited municipal budget - it’s critical to have community members engaging in the process. If citizens understand the goal and adopt new habits of sorting food leftovers, tissue, garden waste, and clean recyclable materials in homes and businesses, it reduces the need for waste separation “at the end of the waste management line.” This saves time and resources, lowers costs, and is more impactful than distributing a brochure and a survey about the importance of sorting and recycling. 

Early signs from our Integral Project Leadership are promising. An initial test measurement showed a 15 percent increase in waste separation by community members. There’s also anecdotal evidence that this inclusive approach is building trust in the municipal capacity to care about community needs. Considered through the IEP Eight Pillars of Peace framework, we’re adding to positive peace by bolstering both Well-functioning Government and Good Relations with Neighbors. 

Of course, improved sorting won’t solve the whole problem. Ultimately, we’ll need access to investment in a fully functioning waste-sorting, recycling, and management facility. But the focus on increased community understanding of the importance of waste sorting will remain critical to reduce system pressures and costs. Our project has built a foundation.