These are people most of us ignore or worse look down on. They roam the streets of Hanoi and other cities on their rickety bicycles or aging motorbikes looking for recyclable material they can sell at a very modest profit. When I saw this woman (90% of scrap collectors and scavengers are women), I thought of a post I wrote over a decade ago entitled Hail The Street Cleaners. What I wrote about the street cleaners also applies to scavengers:

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve observed – with great interest, admiration and respect – street cleaners doing their thing:  picking up, sweeping, and hauling the refuse du jour away in their little carts, thereby restoring a measure of order and cleanliness to what are usually very messy days.

Of course, what Vietnam desperately needs is a national recycling program as one piece of the circular economy puzzle. Short of that, it would be progress if these hardworking people could sell what they find directly to buyers and forgo the middlemen. God knows they deserve the additional income.

Bonus: Here’s a recent article about women’s crucial role in plastic waste reduction. In addition to recycling, Vietnam desperately needs an immediate ban on single-use plastic.

Shalom (שלום), MAA