Marie Sophie
Angoh

I am currently enrolled in a Master of Environmental Studies at York University. My research centers on waste management, Circular Economy and Zero Waste principles through the lens of corporate social responsibility. I aspire to help organizations mitigate their waste for a more sustainable future.

PROJECT

To improve waste diversion rates at Toronto’s events, this project will streamline all necessary information for event organizers looking to manage their waste on one interactive website to avoid confusion and ambiguity. The interactive website will provide step by step instructions, resources and best practices. It will hold events in Toronto to a higher standard by improving on current relevant requirements and provide a sense of accountability to ensure that waste management is a priority.

Changes will be implemented after meetings and interviews are conducted with event organizers to ensure that the resources provided will be catered to them and that the process is as easy and efficient as possible.

The goal is to apply Zero Waste principles to Toronto’s events to minimize the amount of waste, increase diversion rates, educate the public, create resources and tools that can eventually be used by other cities.

By improving waste management practices, we can reduce debris from entering our watersheds, polluting our environment and prolong the lifespan of our landfills.

When I was participating in charity run events and food festivals, it occurred to me that waste separation was not prioritized, and waste diversion efficiency could have been improved.

The following year I stopped attending these events because I felt guilty supporting organizations that were part of the city’s waste problem.

I realized that I should stop avoiding the problem and be apart of the solution. From then on, I started brainstorming on how I could participate in these events without feeling guilty about the waste being generated so that I could continue to support Toronto’s community and culture.

MOTIVATION FOR AND COMMITMENT TO CREATING A BETTER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE PLANET

I once went on a submarine excursion in Mauritius to see the beauty of the ocean that I had engrained in my mind from all the documentaries I had watched. Unfortunately, what I experienced was the aftermath of a dead ecosystem. The corals were dying and no one around me was talking about it. This was my motivation for creating an impact through the field of waste management. I want to protect the ocean and all its beauty by preventing the waste and harmful contaminants from leaching into the ocean and addressing the issue directly at the source.

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