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Generation Change

Bhutan’s ‘trash guy’

Karma Yonten calls himself a “trash guy,” and one thing is certain: He is enthusiastic about waste. Growing up in Bhutan, a small, not very densely populated Himalayan kingdom, 29-year-old Karma never imagined himself working with garbage. There simply wasn’t any when he was young. But the country is developing fast, which opened up Karma to the idea of starting Bhutan’s first private waste management firm in 2010.

Now he teaches other people in his country all about recycling by offering them money in return for segregated waste and by teaching children about the value of it. He even owns a shirt made out of plastic bottles, especially imported from Japan, to show the extent of what is possible. “It makes them excited about waste,” Karma explains with a smile.

This report was supported in part by the Postcode Loterij Fonds for journalists by Free Press Unlimited.

Listen to the report by Aletta André in Timphu, Bhutan:

Bhutans trash guy

Karma Yonten

Every little bit counts (Photos: Aletta André)

Karma Yonten

Karma is proud of being known as the trash guy (Photo: Aletta André)

Karma Yonten

Karma has received numerous awards for his entrepreneurship and activism (Photo: Aletta André)

Date

Tuesday 17.09.2013 | 12:26

Tags

Asia, Bhutan, environment, recycling, trash, waste

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