Closing the Loop: Community-Led Plastic Recovery and Social Peace on the Nile

Farah El Dessouky, Independent (Egypt)

The case study is on the Nile River in Cairo, Egypt, and how it is integrated in conservation efforts. Plastic pollution in the Nile River poses environmental and socioeconomic problems for communities depending on the river’s well-being. The “community loop” model stresses the role of members of the communities, including fishermen and marginalized island communities’ women, in change rather than just being beneficiaries. The project promotes the concept of a circular economy, whose purpose is the reduction of resource conflicts and the promotion of stability in society. The session explains the mobilization of the labor force in the recycling of plastic. The presentation will inform the audience about the use of the environmental crisis in the promotion of a united society.