Title

Please provide a name for your action learning plan.

Our north star is to improve solid waste management at a grassroots-municipal level and accelerate transformations towards a circular economy through collective intelligence.

Challenge statement

Challenge statement: What is your challenge? (Please answer in specific terms: "Our challenge is that...”.)

Our challenge is the limitation of individual actions to face the problem of SWM from a systemic view.

Background: What is the history of your challenge? What is causing or driving it? Who is involved? How does the current situation look like? What undesired effects does it produce?

Solid waste management in Panama is seen as a "never-ending" problem, especially in the main urban centers of Panama. Across more than 5 decades, the role of managing waste in Panama City has shifted from institution to institution - and to this point, there is still a lot of ambiguity about who is responsible for what, while the problem persists... and seems to worsen. Beyond the institutional/governance element, there are sociocultural-behavioral, economic and environmental systems what collide within the solid waste management from rural to peri-urban and urban settings. However, local ecosystems, communities, entrepreneurs, businesses and governments are the most directly impacted and the least understood - or paid attention to. The new legislation for National Solid Waste Management (Law 276, 2021), does not clarify the pre-existing ambiguities, however, it does open an opportunity to generate insights and actions at a local governance/territorial level. We are currently engaging with a diverse set of actors, including the National Waste Collection Authority, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Environment, with whom we intent to support in the adaptation of this new national legislation through solutions mapping, collective intelligence and experimentation that could advance efforts towards a more sustainable solid waste management and transition towards a circular economy from the bottom up.

Quantitative evidence: What (official) data sources do you have on this challenge that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge? You can add text, a link, or a picture.

The basics that are known about SWM in Panama is that each Panamanian generates 1.2kg of waste, but only 65% of the population has access to a waste collection system. The metropolitan area of Panama concentrates more half of the population of the country and also the highest generation of waste, the waste crisis of Panama City is exemplified by the collapse of the landfill of Cerro Patacón, which is already a severe environmental hazard for nearby communities and the city as a whole. To better understand the current state of SWM, we have conducted some data mapping with the National Waste Collection Authority to understand what the current situation of solid waste management looks like for Panama City, as well as existing data related to the situation of the rest of the country. Together with UNDP GIS team, we were able to develop the demo of a dashboard to visualize existing, official data on SWM. However, there are many known unknowns that we currently mapping, such as the location of waste collection points, critical waste collection points and waste collection routes. For the rest of the country, quantitative-official data is almost non-existent, except for the INECO study (2017), which conducted a series of waste characterizations at municipal landfills and some socio-economic analysis of the SWM situation of Panama. However, there is still little understood on the realities of rural municipalities and communities - and this is the focus of our work as a Lab.

Qualitative evidence: What weak signals have you recently spotted that characterizes its urgency? Please provide qualitative information that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge. You can add text, a link, or a picture.

Besides our work as a Lab, we have worked on mapping the 'landscape of actors' related to circular economy and SWM. There are a few insights from the preliminary mapping that emerged, and we are excited to continue to explore:  1. There is a diversity of languages to define the system, which is enriching in itself, but also challenging when it comes to having a common vision to face the problem. 2. This diversity manifests in that there are clusters of actors, connections and disconnections that need to be understood to see gaps and opportunities of collaboration across actors; as well as what are the factors that enable (or not) their capacity to collaborate. 3. The (limited) existing data and information on SWM it is not articulated or openly shared, limiting a broader understanding of the problem (and potential solutions). 4. Lack of information on value chains, especially plastics. 5. There is a cluster of new actors that seem to emerge, particularly in CSOs and entrepreneur's vis a vis the closing of many recycling companies. You can see the map of the 'landscape of solutions' here:

Value proposition: What added value or unique value proposition is your Accelerator Lab bringing to solving this challenge? Why is it your Lab that needs to work on this challenge and not other actors within UNDP, other stakeholders in the country respectively? Why is it worth investing resources to this challenge?

Currently, our CO does not have an intentional area of focus related to SWM and circular economy, however, our work also builds on the existing relationships our CO, as well as previous efforts and projects. The main value proposition we have is to enable a systemic lens or approach to this complex problem, building from grassroots perspectives and what already exists to rethink, co-design and experiment alternative solutions. 

Short “tweet” summary: We would like to tweet what you are working on, can you summarize your challenge in a maximum of 280 characters?

When we think of complex problems, a key question to ask is: What does the landscape of this problem looks like? Panama's AccLab is exploring the 'landscape' dynamics of solid waste management by articulating data, people and GIS to co-design solutions from the bottom-up. 

Challenge classification

Partners

Learning questions

Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?

What does the current landscape of actors and solutions look like for SWM and circular economy? 

Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Data visualization: We are currently working on refining interface and visualization of the demo dashboard using ArcGIS, as well as the solutions mapping platform related to solutions related to SWM and circular economy in Panama.  Solutions mapping: we seek that, from the continuous solutions mapping process and co-designing of solutions, these are always centered in communities and are co-designed from and with their knowledge and practices by generating and sharing ethnographic insights within the communities involved and the broader ecosystem, always considering prior, free and informed consent in this learning processes with them. 

Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Before attempting to map actors via surveys, interviews or focus groups, we want to map previous mapping efforts to visualize the landscape and use it as a tool to generate a collective vision of it. Who is part of it? Who is invisible? Who isn't there, but should be there? It helps diversifying and broadening our understanding of the 'playing ground' of SWM and circular economy in Panama. The current demo map of solutions includes a tool to register and validate solutions, which can enable the crowdsourcing of actors and solutions in a more dynamic way.

Learning questions

Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?

What are the landscape's (system) dynamics and opportunities?

Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Sensemaking: besides the map, we will conduct a series of workshops to understand, from the perspective of multiple actors, how we can work more collaboratively and co-design solutions that are more effective towards improving SWM and circular economy conditions in Panama. Collective intelligence: The map will be one of the tools to continue to engage with key actors and will enable a collective understanding of the 'landscape' of solutions, opportunities for articulation and collaboration within the ecosystem. 

Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

The solid waste problem often turns into a 'pointing fingers' game, however, there is little understood from a behavioral and structural perspective on why this problem persists, why is there a waste collection crisis and critical points are proliferated in urban cities? By pausing and observing, deep - listening and understanding the playing field, we seek to deeper understand the systemic dynamic of the SWM problem - and alternative solutions to it.

Learning questions

Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?

How can we co-design (and implement) tactical solutions to the problem?

Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Community Asset Mapping: By identifying local resources (tangible and untangible) that respond to specific territorial contexts and are key to co-designing solutions from a grassroots perspective. Participatory design: through ethnographic/systems thinking processes, co-design (tactical) solutions & prototypes at a grassroots level.

Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Social cartography, which can also be a form of visual mapping, can help reflect on territorial dynamics and opportunities of the territory collectively, identify where actions could take place and how to bring together capabilities to enable (and take) action.

Closing

Early leads to grow: Think about the possible grow phase for this challenge - who might benefit from your work on this challenge or who might be the champions in your country that you should inform or collaborate with early on to help you grow this challenge?

We have already identified 'nodal' actors: The Circular Economy Center of the National Council of the Private Sector and the Ministry of Environment, The Recycling Chamber, the Ministry of Health, the Association of Municipalities of Panama and the National Waste Collection Authority. All of them require the data, information, insights and learnings from these processes and we are envisioning a national network of actors that could 'monitor' the situation of SWM in Panama at multiple levels.

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