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A philosophical exploration of the problematic nature of the disposable. Plastic bags, newspapers, pizza boxes, razors, watches, diapers, toothbrushes … What makes a thing disposable? Which of its properties allows us to treat it as if it did not matter, or as if it actually lacked matter? Why do so many objects appear to us as nothing more than brief flashes between checkout-line and landfill? In An Ontology of Trash, Greg Kennedy inquires into the meaning of disposable objects and explores the nature of our prodigious refuse. He takes trash as a real ontological problem resulting from our unsettled relation to nature. The metaphysical drive from immanence to transcendence leaves us in an alien world of objects drained of meaningful physical presence. Consequently, they become interpreted as beings that somehow essentially lack being, and exist in our technological world only to disappear. Kennedy explores this problematic nature and looks for possibilities of salutary change.

This study explores the contribution of nutrition knowledge to the health status of pre-school children's mothers in Niger State, North-Central, Nigeria. The study is a descriptive cross-sectional design using a quantitative data collection method. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to recruit 450 mothers of pre-school children across Niger state, Nigeria. Chi-square and linear regression were used to test the level of statistical significance (at p < 0.05). Socioeconomic and demographic information, anthropometric indices and nutrition knowledge were obtained using semi-structured questionnaires. Feeding patterns were also assessed using a qualitative 7-day dietary recall. The results showed that the majority (63.8%) of the mothers were within 26-35 years, and more than half (51.6%) of the mothers lacked knowledge of a \"balanced diet\". Fruits, vegetables, and dairy products were the least consumed food group among the mothers (7.1% and 9.1%, respectively). Place of residence, occupation, and method of waste disposal were significantly associated with maternal minimum dietary diversity adequacy (p<0.05). Over half (57.6%) of the mothers were within the normal BMI range, and the mean waist/hip ratio was 0.82± 0.08. Social media/online was the most (36.4%) explored source of nutrition information among the mothers. This study shows no significant association between nutrition knowledge and adequacy of minimum dietary diversity among the mothers of preschool children (p = 0.09, χ2 = 13.682). Dietary diversity among mothers was associated with the socioeconomic status and BMI of the mothers, which were strong determinants of meal quality and health outcomes in Nigeria and other developing countries experiencing food insecurity.

Background Within South Africa, many low-income communities lack reliable waste management services. Within these contexts, absorbent hygiene product (AHP) waste, including nappies (diapers), are not recycled, and are often dumped, ending up in watercourses and polluting the local environment. The structural barriers to collection which have been well explored, however the behavioural determinants of safe disposal for AHPs remains poorly understood. The purpose of this study is to determine the psycho-social factors driving AHP disposal behaviour for caregivers, while identifying potential underlying mechanisms (such as mental health), which may be influencing disposal behaviour, with the intention of informing a future, contextually appropriate and sustainable, collection system. Methods The cross-sectional study was conducted within three low-income communities located within eThekwini Municipality (Durban), South Africa. The study included a pre-study and a quantitative survey of 452 caregivers, utilising the RANAS approach of behaviour change. The quantitative questionnaire was based on the RANAS model to measure psycho-social factors underlying sanitary disposal of AHPs. Mental health was assessed using the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20). Statistical analysis involved regressing psycho-social factors onto disposal behaviour and exploring their interaction with mental health through a moderation model. Results Our findings suggest that one third of caregivers do not dispose of nappies sanitarily, despite intent (86.9%). Regression analysis revealed ten psycho-social factors which significantly predict the desired behavioural outcome, the sanitary disposal of AHPs. Caregivers with poor mental health were less likely to dispose of AHP sanitarily, which reflects previous research linking poor mental health and the impairment of health-related daily activities, particularly within vulnerable groups. Specifically, several psycho-social factors underlying were moderated by poor mental health, the prevalence of sanitary disposal of AHPs depended on mental condition of caregiver. Conclusions Our findings confirmed the link between poor mental health and unsanitary AHPs disposal. This is especially relevant because poor mental health is common within South Africa. Addressing mental health problems within these communities is an essential step to providing sustainable waste management services. The findings informed an intervention strategy to implement a future collection system for these communities, and similar low-income or informal contexts within South Africa.

This study explores how subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and expectation influence waste sorting intention among urban millennial workers in Indonesia. Using data from 406 respondents, the study applied a quantitative survey analyzed with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results show that perceived behavioral control affects expectation, which partially mediates its impact on intention. Both perceived behavioral control and expectation also directly influence intention, while subjective norm emerges as the strongest predictor, highlighting the role of social pressure in a collectivist culture. The findings suggest the need to strengthen social norms, enforce regulations, and improve infrastructure. Limitations include the focus on millennials, self-reported data, and a cross-sectional design. Future studies should target more diverse populations and track behavioral changes longitudinally.

In low and middle-income countries, the manually operated municipal waste collection system prominently depended on the performance of waste collectors (WC). Most of the literature has focused on the impact of waste collection tasks on WCs' physical health, while little was known about the psychological effects of work-related stress. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of psychological stress and related factors among waste collectors in Hanoi, Vietnam. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 802 WCs in 2017. The questionnaire included the 7-item Stress component of the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, and questions on demographics and work conditions. Descriptive and multivariate logistics regression analyses were conducted to examine the factors related to psychological stress among WCs. The high percentage of workers with severe stress implies the need for mental health prevention and treatment for WCs who participated in this study.

Introduction Risk perception involves subjective judgments about risk. The mismanagement of healthcare waste puts people and the environment at significant risk, including more than two million healthcare workers. Despite this, there are no studies in Ethiopia on the risk perception of health workers, and none studies globally have utilized a risk model in this context. Objective This study aimed to assess the risk perception of healthcare waste and its associated factors among healthcare workers in public hospitals in Arba Minch, South Ethiopia, in 2024 using extended parallel process model. Methods An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 270 health workers. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data, which was then exported to SPSS version 26. T-test and ANOVA tests were conducted to compare the mean differences in perceptions among respondents’ characteristics and among attitudinal response (efficacy by threat interaction), while correlation analysis was used to assess the relationships among perceptions. Binary logistic regression was employed to identify significant factors affecting healthcare waste risk perception, using a p-value of 0.05 with a 95% confidence interval. The final model’s fitness was checked using the Hosmer and Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test. Result One hundred three respondents (39.5%) were classified as no-response, followed by 62 (23.6%) who were Responsive, 66 (25.3%) who were Proactive respondents, and 30 (11.6%) who were categorized as fear Control respondents. The danger-controlling response for healthcare workers (HCWs) was 108 (41.4%). Perceived self-efficacy was the lowest perception among HCWs (median = 55). Midwife respondents had lower odds (AOR: 0.132, CI: 0.039–0.44) of controlling the danger associated with HCW risks, while receiving a message from training (AOR: 3.17, CI: 1.052–9.59) moreover, having good knowledge (AOR: 3.46, CI: 1.49–8.02) increased odds of controlling danger of HCW risks. Conclusions The study revealed a low healthcare waste risk perception processing. The type of Profession, source of message, and level of knowledge were significantly associated with danger control response to HCW hazards. Training that incorporates both threat and efficacy messaging based on Risk Behavior Diagnosis scale assessment is recommended.

Background Segregation of household waste at the source is an effective and sustainable strategy for management of municipal waste. However, household segregation levels remain insufficient as waste management approaches are mostly top down and lack local support. The realisation and recognition of effective, improved and adequate waste management may be one of the vital drivers for attaining environmental protection and improved health and well-being. The presence of a local level motivator may promote household waste segregation and ultimately pro-environmental behaviour. The present cluster randomized control trial aims to understand if volunteer based information on waste segregation (I-MISS) can effectively promote increased waste segregation practices at the household level when compared with existing routine waste segregation information in an urban Indian setting. Methods This paper describes the protocol of an 18 month two-group parallel,cluster randomised controlled trialin the urban setting of Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India. Randomization will be conducted at ward level, which is the last administrative unit of the municipality. The study will recruit 425 households in intervention and control groups. Assessments will be performed at baseline (0 months), midline (6 months), end line (12 months) and post intervention (18 months). The primary outcome will be the comparison of change in proportion of households practicing waste segregation and change in proportion of mis-sorted waste across the study period between the intervention and control groups as assessed by pick analysis. Intention to treat analysis will be conducted. Written informed consent will be obtained from all participants. Discussion The present study is designed to study whether an external motivator, a volunteer selected from the participating community and empowered with adequate training, could disseminate waste segregation information to their community, thus promoting household waste segregation and ultimately pro-environmental behaviour. The study envisages that the volunteers could link waste management service providers and the community, give a local perspective to waste management, and help to change community habits through information, constant communication and feedback. Trial registration The study is registered prospectively with Indian Council of Medical Research- Clinical Trial Registry of India ( CTRI/2020/03/024278 ).

Due to increasing demand on earth sources in all areas, some materials have come under pressure for effective recovery and reuse. In this sense, the management of waste materials has become an important need for effective utilizations. In this regard, the waste management behaviour of individuals towards zero waste was studied using a scale and included pre-testing and administering a survey, and reducing the number of items with the determination of factors. The scale was evaluated using all necessary statistical measures. The IBM SPSS and IBM SPPS AMOS were utilized for confirmatory and expository factor analyses, respectively. It was found that the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient determined the reliability level of the improved scale, at 0.909, while the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin coefficient was determined as 0.887. The Bartlett’s sphericity test result was found to be p < 0.000. The test results clearly indicated that the sample size was adequate for the measurement of the construct and a patterned relationship among the items was detected. However, the reliability and validity of the developed scaled were confirmed by the goodness of fit indices used. It is important to note that education, profession, level of income, and place of residence significantly influenced the participants’ zero waste management behaviour, but the gender and age of the participants were not influential factors. By having these experimental results, it is suitable to suggest that a model consisting of three factors (knowledge, facilities, and motivation) was capable of measuring the waste management behaviour of people towards zero waste in Turkey.

Although researchers have tried to explain why individuals are unwilling to sort waste, few studies focus on whether and how ego-depletion can inhibit an individual from separating waste. Here, we investigate the effectiveness of financial incentives in mitigating the impact of ego-depletion, a phenomenon triggered by demanding tasks that subsequently impair task performance. Experiment 1 revealed that when participants were involved in a task that expended substantial effort and energy in an initial task, they were more likely to discontinue a subsequent waste sorting task. Experiment 2, however, demonstrated a significant shift when financial incentives were introduced. Even in states of high depletion, the promise of financial rewards substantially increased participants’ perseverance in waste sorting. These findings not only reveal the influence of ego-depletion as a barrier to effective waste sorting but also highlight the practical potential for policymakers and environmental practitioners to motivate individuals through appropriate incentives. By addressing psychological factors (i.e., ego-depletion) and integrating incentives, this research contributes to more sustainable waste management practices.