This Monday, May 17, is International Recycling Day, proclaimed by UNESCO in 2005 to raise awareness of the importance of treating waste in order to protect the environment and combat climate change. This is why we highlight the organizations that help clean up our city and raise awareness about these issues.
The Operations Department of the Municipality of Valparaiso, among other functions, is dedicated to develop actions to ensure the cleanliness of public spaces, garbage collection, and disposal of waste and contribute in the best possible way to the ornamentation of public spaces either directly or through third parties. These tasks are divided between the Department of Sanitation and the Department of Parks and Gardens.
1. Valpo Interviene is a non-governmental organization concerned with environmental protection and the recovery of public spaces that began working in 2011 as a community organization and was formed as an NGO in 2015. Currently, it is composed of a multidisciplinary team of professionals, who seek to promote good environmental practices in the community and businesses of Valparaiso, in order to achieve a cleaner and more environmentally friendly city. It is dedicated to the recycling of inorganic waste (oil, pet, eco-bricks, cans, scrap metal, etc.), organic waste (fruits, vegetables, tea, eggs, coffee, etc.), electronic waste (mouse, keyboard, tablet, cell phone, computer, etc.). Among the most important milestones of this organization are:
- Restoration of Hector Calvo staircase in Cerro Bellavista (2015).
- Restoration of the Mackenna staircase with colorful mosaic (2016).
- Winner Chile Globe Energy (2016).
To learn more about this NGO and the services it offers check out its networks:
2. Fundación Minga Valpo works to develop projects that integrate the community in the territory with special interest in involving children in the development of cities. For this purpose, projects are built that contribute to the development of the community under the principles of bio-construction and sustainability. After the fire in Valparaiso, last April 12, 2014, a group of young architects got together and decided to respond to the tragedy. They created a reconstruction project based on energy efficiency, use of natural materials and recycling, building works in accordance with the immediate context. The Minga Valpo project has achieved all these objectives and thanks to the support of hundreds of people has become a foundation that has allowed families to learn by making their own spaces.
To learn more about this foundation, visit their networks:
3. Tac (Taller de Acción Comunitaria) is a community NGO that was born in 1989 in Cerro Cordillera. Among its activities are the realization of workshops of vegetable garden, cooking, masks, etc. In 1990, the organization moved to a ravine in Cordillera that had been a garbage dump for more than 40 years. The community is invited to organize clean-up days. Once recovered, the first plaza was consolidated. This space facilitates activities for up to 630 people. In the construction of the amphitheater and space in general, more than 1,000 people participate on a voluntary basis.
Check out the activities carried out by this NGO in their networks:
4. IMEKO was born in 2018 as a chemical scientific startup to provide a solution to the environmental problem caused by cigarette butts. After extensive research and technological development during 2017, they managed to come up with the chemical process that today makes cigarette butts a completely recyclable waste, removing all the toxicity present in them and recovering the cellulose acetate from which they are made, transforming it into a new recyclable raw material for the industry. Since then, IMEKO has promoted the creation of a new value and recycling chain around this waste at a national level, mobilizing municipalities, companies and thousands of people to become part of the solution to this problem.
Learn more about this initiative in detail in their networks: