On May 20, 2021, Project Zacchaeus (PZC), through its Eco Kolek Project, formally signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the local government officials of Barangay Bancao-Bancao and a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Samahan ng mga Mamamayan ng Jacana (SMJ), a cooperative composed of informal waste pickers in the area.

The MOU with the barangay LGU supports the shared goal of promoting 3R practices—reduce, reuse, recycle—and strengthening solid waste management (SWM) at the community level. Barangay Captain Gayjun Dangan pledged “101% support” to the initiative, affirming the LGU’s commitment to sustainability.

The agreement with SMJ, which represents 60 informal waste pickers, aims to further empower members through health and safety assistance, leadership development, and skills training, enabling them to become catalysts of change for ecological solid waste management in line with RA 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000).

PZC Eco Kolek Project Director John Vincent Gastanes reflected on seven years of volunteer work in Jacana, saying, “We all have our calling, and we are here because we are called for this—to help communities.”

Meanwhile, John Edgar, Director of the Office of Environment and Energy of USAID Philippines, lauded the partnership: “Through this collaboration, we are reimagining urban waste systems and challenging sectoral norms, improving waste collectors’ work environments, and opening opportunities for higher income in the future.”

Eco Kolek is a proud grantee of USAID’s Clean Cities, Blue Ocean Program, which supports locally-led solutions to strengthen 3R practices and combat marine debris from entering the ocean.