article · Waste Management
This research assesses how municipal waste authorities can improve public awareness and engagement in municipal solid waste management, focusing on Lagos State. Using expansion diffusion theory, the investigation analyses how new practices and concepts spread across urban populations via different communication channels. A mixed-methods approach gathered data through 116 resident surveys alongside five in-depth interviews. The results indicate that existing efforts require a more structured approach that explicitly accounts for distinct demographic groups and their specific responses to information diffusion. To address these gaps, four operational pillars are introduced to help authorities in developing regions maintain effective waste awareness campaigns, accompanied by an awareness campaign strategy flowchart designed to foster sustained public participation.
Rapidly growing cities face severe environmental and public health risks from poorly managed waste. Ensuring that local populations understand and actively take part in waste management requires effective communication. By identifying how distinct urban communities adopt new practices, local authorities can design targeted, sustained awareness initiatives that encourage better civic participation and cleaner urban environments.
The findings offer strategic frameworks, specifically four operational pillars and a campaign flowchart, that municipal authorities, urban planning agencies, and public communication consultants can use to structure waste awareness programmes. As a conceptual and policy-oriented framework supported by survey data, it represents an early-stage planning tool rather than a deployed commercial product, requiring practical adaptation by operational waste management bodies.
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This study examined the role of waste management authorities in promoting public awareness of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) through the lens of the expansion diffusion theory (EDT). EDT emphasizes the spread of new ideas and practices within a society through various communication channels and distinct individuals within each system. We employed a mixed-method approach using 116 survey responses from Lagos residents and five semi-structured in-depth interviews. Our findings reveal the need for a more structured approach to create public awareness of MSWM, considering the distinct groups of residents in Lagos and their responses to innovation and knowledge diffusion. We propose four pillars on which waste management authorities in developing countries can sustain their MSWM awareness campaigns, as well as an awareness campaign strategy flowchart. Our findings add to the expanding body of research on public awareness and participation in MSWM, emphasizing the critical role that waste management authorities can play in fostering sustainable waste management awareness and practices.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2024.09.032
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