Center for Health, Environment and Safety Studies: Waste to wealth program linking young scavengers to university students

Nigeria – CHESS is committed to the protection and promotion of health and environment for better living.  CHESSs main goal is to create environment and health awareness through trainings, workshops, seminars, conferences liaising with other bodies or institutions, government and non-governmental organizations, to promote solution-oriented research and effective policy recommendations. CHESS focuses its efforts on services to humanity, community development projects, manpower development and skill acquisition for economic empowerment.

The project focuses on generating economic empowerment from solid waste by utilizing recycling for development in a waste to wealth program. The target groups are the young solid waste vendors and solid waste managers. This waste to wealth for youth empowerment project also seeks to create a network of young solid waste scavengers/vendors and private solid waste managers in Ibadan; the largest city in Nigeria.  The project will work to build more interest in the field of waste recycling and resource recovery as source of economic empowerment, networking to address common challenges faced by young waste vendors and the private solid waste managers, and strategies and ways to develop and strengthen capacities of young vendors and private solid waste managers.

In 2010 GPA awarded this organization a first grant of $5080.  In 2013 GPA awarded the organization a second grant of $10,000 to expand the project and increase organizational sustainability.