A clean environment is an important prerequisite for our wellbeing. When our surroundings are clean, we feel content and healthy. On the other hand, the sheer sight of garbage and stench emanating from it make us feel nauseous. But how often do we realise that we are also part of the problem? We all dislike the sight of litter on the streets, but how many of us consciously try to not dump garbage outdoors? The irony is that while we love to keep our houses spick and span, we don’t take the responsibility of maintaining cleanliness in our surroundings. Kitchen waste, rotting food, plastic wrappers, used glass bottles—we often dump irresponsibly on the streets or any open spaces without considering the harmful consequences of our actions.
Waste management is a huge crisis in India. According to the erstwhile Planning Commission, urban India generates 62 million tonnes of waste annually and it’s predicted to rise to 165 million tonnes by 2030. Another study estimates that approximately 90 percent of residual waste is dumped in public spaces. These numbers are staggering and call for urgent action to deal with the issue of waste management. This is where Bengaluru-based industrial designer Poonam Bir Kasturi comes in.
Armed with the mission to simplify urban waste management, Kasturi founded Daily Dump in 2006. Through her work, Kasturi is helping people learn the art of composting, which helps in reducing the sheer volumes of garbage in our homes. Using her design skills to solve the waste management crisis, she has created terracotta home composters with the “the primary motivation to see how design thinking could address a complex problem like waste and if anything was possible to create an intervention that could help change people’s mindset and behaviour that will benefit the whole community.”
In an exclusive interview, Soulveda speaks to Kasturi about her work and how her initiative can help us simplify urban waste management and pave the way for a greener and healthier country.
What challenges did you face while trying to convince people about the importance of composting?
The biggest challenge was dealing with the perception that it smells, it’s unhealthy, and you can’t have waste inside your home. People felt it’s inconvenient, not worth their money, takes time, and it should be the government’s responsibility.
We also did a study and found that 60 percent of the dustbins in India were organic by weight. We studied the possibility of what could be done with organic waste and composting was the immediate answer. Composting is nature’s way of recycling and putting nutrients back in the soil. But when we asked people if they knew what composting was, we got answers like ‘it’s a very difficult process, ‘it smells’ et cetera.
We addressed all these barriers through design. 15 years ago, we created a product that didn’t look like a dustbin, which you can keep in your balcony or garden. It’s India’s first home composter that would allow people to turn their waste into compost from their homes. It can even become a symbol of your pride, as it makes you part of the solution instead of the problem. We named it khamba, which is also acknowledged by the government of India as an important part of the Swachh Bharat campaign.
Tell us about the health benefits of composting and how can it improve our overall wellbeing?
It gives you a sense of satisfaction when you take the compost and grow something from it. There’s enough research to show that when you grow plants, your anxiety reduces, you are more centered, more mindful, and have a better sense of wellbeing. Composting also helps you understand the relationship between food and your health. We have seen customers, who didn’t like plants initially, slowly getting interested in the process. Eventually, this idea grows into your life and brings a sense of wellbeing.
Comments