To understand the perception of waste and hygiene under the umbrella term WASH, I realized that discussions were often limited to adults, many of whom were not from the villages in the Ganjam region of Odisha. To gain insight into how the children, who were born and raised in this context and will one day become decision-makers, perceive these issues, we conducted a three-part exercise with the children of Nuagaon, one of the intervention villages of the Dakshin Foundation. Senior Fellow Vardhna Puri suggested this idea after our discussion on the importance of involving children in the discussion of alternative practices, as they are often overlooked in the planning stages of interventions and their understanding of the issues is seldom considered. The activity started with 10 children—8 boys and 2 girls. However, after the first exercise, a young boy joined the group, which was an endearing and amusing realization!
The activity was divided into three parts. In the first part, we conducted a transect walk around the village, led by the children. They were asked to take us to places they considered overly cluttered with garbage and unclean. During this walk, we gave them our phones to take photos. Interestingly, they took us to spots we had missed on our previous walks with the field staff, including paths filled with heaps of garbage, their favorite cricket ground, and other open spaces increasingly burdened with waste. They shared which spots were their favourites and which ones they didn’t like. The disliked areas were mostly places that got waterlogged due to blocked drainage. They were particularly saddened because, in the last few months, even their favourite place, the cricket ground, was getting smaller due to garbage disposal on its periphery. The children decided among themselves that one person would pose, pointing out these spots while the others took photos. It was also interesting to observe the dynamics within the group. Some children naturally took the lead during the walk, while some of the girls needed more prompting to take photos or show us the places they liked or disliked. I am attaching some of the photos below.
In the second part of the activity, after some cooling-down exercises, we drew what we imagined these spaces could look like alternatively or how we could use those areas differently. We mostly explained our objective of the activity but let the children generate the ideas themselves. I am attaching some of these drawings below. We then shared our drawings with the group and discussed the thoughts behind them.
One boy shared how, when the water from the taps or wells flows and combines with the garbage, everything becomes a mess. He drew a garden on the side (the green patch) that remains dry and small. But if the garbage is removed, the water will flow smoothly, there won’t be a dirty mess, and the water will reach the garden, helping it grow greener and spread larger.
Another boy drew a picture of himself cleaning up the space, planting his favorite fruit trees, and building a better house that could also be used for tuition classes (since there is often a lack of spacious areas where all the kids can sit comfortably). When the fruits ripen, he could enjoy them and sell the surplus at the market. Additionally, he drew solar panels to generate electricity, as there are frequent power cuts in the village during summer, and there was no electricity on the day of our activity.
He drew a playground like the ones he sees in parks when he goes out of the village with his family. He also drew a bigger house for his family and a cleaner source of water. Additionally, he depicted bigger, concrete roads and envisioned extending the concept of a clean village to the entire country. He added that people might be less likely to throw garbage near the flag.
Two other boys drew how they would like to have better houses like the ones they see on TV and mobile devices. They noted that without the garbage, the roads could be wider, allowing cars to move through their village. During our walk around the village, they pointed out water pumps surrounded by garbage and included these in their drawings. Interestingly, they illustrated how the garbage exacerbates the heat and included the sun in their drawings. The main difference in their drawings was that one depicted a large, clean cricket ground, while the other drew a cleaner beach with a falcon sitting among the boats.
One boy drew temples, noting that the areas near temples are usually kept clean. He suggested that if they clean the area and build temples there, it will help keep those areas clean. Another girl also drew a temple but mentioned that the main temple often becomes very crowded. She said building additional temples would allow more people to visit peacefully.
Many other children drew multiple pictures of the beaches, envisioning them with less plastic and more fish and fishing boats..
In the third stage of the activity, we asked the children to think about their future roles as village leaders. Since the village belonged to them, we wanted to know what they thought they could do to address the waste issues.
Some of the ideas they shared involved mobilising within the village. They suggested forming groups or using existing ones, like those who play frisbee or attend tuition classes. They could gather after tuition or during weekends. They also discussed placing dustbins throughout the village, with one person suggesting having two types of bins to segregate the waste. Another child talked about the need for garbage collection from home to home or from each lane, possibly with a car moving around the village to collect waste. Many emphasised the importance of picking up waste whenever they see it and disposing of it in the bins. They mentioned that currently, the attitude is that waste management is someone else’s responsibility, pushing it to the next person and not taking ownership of one’s action which leads to increasing waste and a dirty environment. They shared they would need to talk to their friends and family to change this mindset.
This activity helped us understand the existing ideas about waste and garbage among the children and how they perceived these issues. It will aid us in planning and designing future activities, clean-up drives, and Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials, as well as creating platforms where children can participate in the WASH management of their villages. Children are the catalysts for the changes we aspire to see in our villages.
