'Trash is Cash:' Kenyan kids rap about a green revolution

A hip-hop group made up of kids who grew up around Nairobi's slums rhythmically illustrates how recycling can create a new green economy.

Thu, Jan 06 2011 at 4:14 PM

Related Topics:

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Sustainable Communities

Image: Still from "Trash is Cash"/viewchange.org

Need a reminder to recycle? Here's an eco-rap video that'll get stuck in your head. "Trash is Cash" is the latest green song making the rounds on the eco-blogosphere. "No more pollution, Trash is cash!" goes the chorus.

Performed by Wafalme, a hip-hop group made up of kids who grew up in the slums around Nairobi, Kenya, this rap video not only highlights the ecological disaster that open landfills create, but also points out that recycling materials in those landfills can create green jobs and a greener economy.

How exactly is trash cash? Honestly, I had a hard time making out a lot of the words in the rap video. Luckily, ViewChange.org provided the full transcript, including this bit:

Eco sandals, handbags, jewelry made from the trashy granular

Mattress, pillow baskets, roof tiles from the trash plastic

Sold to local and foreign market

Metals sold to scrap dealers in a rampage

Cheap cookers made using dumped coffee seeds and paper as fuel

"Trash is Cash," produced by Peter Jansen, was the winning video in the sustainability category for the ViewChange Online Film Contest, which invited stories "that show how development efforts are helping the world's poorest people to improve their lives."

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