How Soweto is Transforming Dumpsites into Community Hubs
15 May 2025
What is the problem?
Mbali Zulu, a community activist and social entrepreneur in Soweto, has led community clean-up initiatives for many years. However, he noticed that the areas he and his community cleaned of litter would become filled with trash again often within days. The persistent issue of illegal dumping in Soweto is also linked to the township’s myriad other challenges: economic exclusion, unemployment and safety and security issues.
How are they solving it?
Recognising the need for long-term solutions to Soweto’s challenges, Zulu brought multiple community-based organisations with an engaged ward councillor to form the Keep Kasi Clean campaign.
The initiative works to identify and address the causes of illegal dumping in a specific neighbourhood. Zulu explains, then residents are asked, “What would you like to see [the dumpsite] become?”
The Keep Kasi Clean campaign is inspired by the success of long-term community transformation efforts. Most notably, Lebo’s Soweto Backpackers worked with the local community to clean up a nearby dump site. Once cleared, they planted trees, set up benches and created a beautiful green park for neighbours and tourists to enjoy.
With the Keep Kasi Clean campaign, progress is underway in five communities in Soweto to turn illegal dumpsites into positive community spaces – everything from a community garden to a small business hub to an early childhood development centre. The campaign takes actionable steps to both address illegal dumping and help address Soweto’s other persistent issues.
What’s making it work?
Building on community assets: Soweto’s strengths – its rich history, the creativity of its people, the township’s arts and music, and the everyday resilient entrepreneurship of its residents – provide a firm foundation for efforts to address its challenges. “This is a vibrant community… the people themselves are the gold of the city,” says Zulu. Highlighting Soweto’s strengths has enabled Zulu and others to attract a growing tourist market and investment, providing much-needed economic stimulus to Soweto and helping build up a sense of community pride for the people who live there.
Starting with small steps: Zulu emphasises small everyday actions like disposing of household waste correctly and encourages residents to become responsible citizens. He says, “If you can achieve that – getting rid of litter, making it safe in our community – then we can achieve big things.”
Working at the neighbourhood level: Through door-to-door research, Zulu and his team have come to understand why people in each area surrounding a dumpsite leave trash there. Each household and community has different factors that lead them to dump waste. It’s been critical to understand neighbourhood-level causes as a basis for changing behaviours and setting up new systems for better waste management.
Going beyond once-off clean-ups: Working towards “transforming these illegal dumping areas into positive public spaces that will benefit us as a community” has enabled neighbourhoods in Soweto to deal with illegal dumping in a more permanent way than once-off community clean-ups.
Collaborating with local government: The Keep Kasi Clean campaign works closely with ward councillor Lefa Molise of Ward 39, Orlando West. Molise has secured community buy-in for Keep Kasi Clean efforts, helped access government resources, communicated with residents, and provided feedback on initiatives. Although some councillors in Soweto are absent or more difficult to work with, Zulu comments, “To gain the community’s trust, you need the ward councillor to be active.”
Community partnerships: Keep Kasi Clean brings together Jozi My Jozi, the Soweto Rotary Community Corps and several local communities. They also work with Soweto's community policing forums and local government. This collaboration is critical to sharing resources to make their efforts a success.
With every dumpsite they’re turning around, Keep Kasi Clean is transforming Soweto into a thriving community for everyone.
Get your community involved
Is there a community-driven group or caring business in your area? A dedicated group of committed people can effectively solve local problems.
Think about starting or joining community groups like a street WhatsApp group, residents' association, or community policing forum (CPF) to get help and to stay informed and involved in local issues.
How to start a residents' association
How to set up a community policing forum
How to set up a neighbourhood watch
How to organise community action
How to use media to create pressure for change
Know your rights – how local government works
It’s important to understand how your local government works so that you can work with them to support what they are doing while your community continues to keep them accountable and deliver services on time. Remember you have a constitutional right to many of the services provided by local government, as well as to accountability and transparency, wherever you live and regardless of how much you earn. It is also where money collected from taxes and rates goes.
Acknowledgements
Author: Maru Attwood
Thanks to Bridget Hilton Barber for a profile on Mbali Zulu in Daily Maverick where fixlocal learned of the Keep Kasi Clean campaign.
Photo: Jozi My Jozi
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