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The world, as a whole, is facing a serious waste generation problem, as all countries are quickly becoming “throw-away” communities, generating more waste now than ever before. Personal responsibility is crucial in creating less waste, and economic pressures for more efficient waste management strategies drive technology to work out new options for waste minimisation and treatment. While waste minimisation and management strategies abound, each has its advantages and disadvantages, and what is applicable in one region may not achieve the same success in another due to differences in culture, community support and politics.

Legislation and regulations have been the standard approach of dealing with waste management by many governments. Rational and long-term waste management strategies reduce environmental harm, minimise the production of greenhouse gases and associated pollutants, result in social benefits, and save money. The waste management sector is a growing field and, as such, it creates much needed employment. Moreover, manufacturers and businesses become cleaner and more efficient, use fewer raw materials and spend less on waste disposal and pollution clean-up, enhancing their public image and increasing profits, as the public prefers to support cleaner industry and environmentally responsible business.

As a leading environmental organisation active in 130 countries, B.I.O. has placed special emphasis on waste management through many conferences and special events, as well as through its many publications – volumes of proceedings, textbooks, educational materials, periodicals. Over the years, leading scientists, business leaders and specialists have addressed issues of waste management at B.I.O.’s international conferences, and several articles are featured in BioNews. A comprehensive chapter on “Waste Management” is published in Bio-Syllabus for European Environmental Education, an 880-page textbook available in print and electronically (CD-Rom). Based on this pioneering material is B.I.O.’s e-learning course on “Waste Management,” which will soon be available online as part of our e-learning programme in environmental education. Moreover, a plethora of educational and training material with emphasis on recycling and other waste management strategies was prepared by B.I.O. within the framework of the European Union’s Phare, TEMPUS, and Leonardo da Vinci Training Programmes. This material was used in vocational training activities in Europe and in EU accession countries.