Waste Pickers at the Center: Lessons from Brazil’s Reverse Logistic and EPR Journey | Cooperation with the Informal Sector – A Key Pillar for Successful EPR Implementation

The Global Action Partnership for EPR invites you to join us for this next session of our webinar series on Cooperation with the Informal Sector – Key Pillar to Successful EPR Implementation on April 28th with ANCAT and WIEGO!

Waste Pickers at the Center: Lessons from Brazil’s Reverse Logistic and EPR Journey
April 28th, 2 PM CEST
with ANCAT and WIEGO
Translation EN – PT available
Watch the recording here
Revisit the presentation here

Brazil is one of the most compelling examples of how waste pickers can actively shape and benefit from extended producer responsibility (EPR) systems. This webinar shares the perspectives of WIEGO and Brazil’s national waste pickers’ movement (ANCAT, Associação Nacional de Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis) and provides firsthand insights into Brazil’s reverse logistics system.

Perspectives from a waste pickers’ association: Anderson Nassif who leads the waste pickers’ association ANCAT, reports on how the Reverse logistic system and EPR impacted local cooperatives. He will share how ANCAT became the first waste picker organization to be certified as a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) – a milestone for the global recognition of waste pickers within formal EPR systems.

Brazil’s policy framework: Ricardo Abussafy an independent consultant at WIEGO introduces the Reverse Logistics System and explains how waste picker organizations can be strengthened becoming partners within an EPR system.

EPR and climate action: WIEGO’s global waste specialist Sonia Dias will share WIEGO’s innovative approaches to the near-real-time monitoring of extreme weather events, a project implemented in 6 capital cities involving 16 waste picker cooperatives that are part of Mãos pro Futuro reverse logistics program.

Join an in-depth discussion that sheds light on the experiences of waste picker communities and provides insights for inclusive EPR systems.

Speakers

Anderson Nassif is an experienced leader in the recycling sector, having worked as a recyclable materials collector since 2003. As a co-founder of Cooperlol, a cooperative dedicated to recycling, he has played a key role in the organization’s development and growth. He currently serves as Director of the Anastácia Network of Cooperatives and Director of Reverse Logistics at ANCAT – the National Association of Waste Pickers – where he contributes to the coordination and representation of waste pickers’ interests at the national level. Anderson is also an active member of the State Coordination of the MNCR – the National Movement of Waste Pickers – highlighting his commitment to defending the rights and interests of waste pickers throughout Brazil.

Ricardo Abussafy is a social psychologist and socio-environmental development specialist. With over 20 years of experience, he has supported the organization of waste picker cooperatives and contributed to policy-making on waste management, working across roles from researcher and technical consultant to coordinator and executive manager. He has also worked as a university professor in Social Psychology, Public Health, and Environmental Psychology, and in recent years has focused on circular economy and sustainable cities.

Sonia Dias is a Global waste management specialist at WIEGO and has extensive experience in inclusive waste management and in integrating waste collectors into EPR systems. Her work focuses on women in informal employment as well as linking waste management and climate action, including the development of innovative approaches to monitoring the impacts of climate change on waste collector organizations.

Our Webinar Series on Cooperation with the Informal Sector

🌱 Between January and June 2026, the GAP for EPR is hosting a multi-part series on “Cooperation with the Informal Sector – Key Pillar to Successful EPR Implementation”! The series will explore challenges, best practices, and solutions for integrating informal actors across different material streams and geographical contexts, providing participants with actionable insights for designing more inclusive and effective EPR frameworks.

The views and opinions expressed in this webinar do not necessarily reflect the positions of the core partners of GAP for EPR, nor of PREVENT Waste Alliance members or official policy positions of the international organisations and governments involved.