For Teddy, waste picking has been more than just a job-it has been a lifeline. "Becoming a waste picker got me off the streets," he says. "As the eldest child, my parents depend on me, and I help support my younger siblings. I'd rather do this honest work than get involved in anything illegal."
But the journey hasn't been easy. In the beginning, Teddy faced stigma and ridicule from his community. "People thought I was a chokoraa or mentally ill just because I was collecting garbage," he says. "It was hard, but I knew what I was doing had value."
Every Saturday, Teddy joins his fellow collectors to cover hundreds of homes. The income he earns-about Sh400 a week-may seem small, but it makes a real difference in his household. "When I go home with Sh400, I give my mum Sh200 and keep the other half for my personal needs. That balance keeps me going," he says.
Outside of waste picking, Teddy does occasional menial jobs to supplement his income, but it's clear that his dedication to environmental action is not just about survival-it's about dignity, purpose and building a cleaner future for Kibera.
Led by Brian Gisore Nyabuti as the founder and chairman Ali Yusuf, 27, the organisation employs a multi-pronged approach to waste management. Brian stands proudly beside a sturdy chair in their Kibera-based workshop.
At first glance, it appears like an ordinary bench, but it's far from it. "This chair is made entirely from compressed plastic - polythene bags, PVC, plastic bottles, even nylon," he explains. "Every type of plastic waste you can think of."
The innovation didn't start with big money or high-tech machinery. "We used what we had," Brian says, pointing to a local contraption they fashioned into a heat press using iron box technology and later, affordable oven coils. "We created a crusher to break down the plastics, and then we press and mold them into furniture and building panels. Everything here is locally made - by locals, for locals."
From discarded plastic, the team now manufactures a wide range of products - including outdoor benches, house numbering plaques, and even school furniture.
"We started this project in 2023 after connecting with Slum Dwellers International at the UN Habitat conference," Brian recalls. "They saw our compressed plastic panels and thought they could be used for slum house numbering instead of wood."That idea sparked a groundbreaking project. SGGC was commissioned to produce 9,000 house number plates for informal settlements like Mathare 4B, each selling for Sh650. The result? An impressive Sh5.8 million generated in just two years.
"It wasn't just about money," Brian says. "It was about mapping slums more efficiently and giving informal settlements structure. Each color-coded plaque - blue for hospitals, red for schools, yellow for churches, brown for households - has helped make sense of the maze-like layout of these communities."
The group is now scaling further. One of their ongoing projects involves manufacturing heavy-duty plastic chairs and benches. These are being supplied to schools across Kibera through a sponsorship by a UK-based NGO and in partnership with Shining Hope for Communities (Shofco). "We've already identified 10 vulnerable schools that will receive these seats," says Brian. "They are very durable - almost like concrete - and fire-resistant.
But how do they manage the manufacturing process with limited resources? "We have a special machine that works like a pressure cooker," Brian says. "It has a compressor, a heating cylinder and a combustion chamber that burns used oil, not electricity. We collect waste oil from petrol stations and garages. It's cheap - about two or three dollars - and helps us reduce our production costs."
But even with progress, challenges remain. "Many people in the informal settlements still believe it's the government's job to collect waste," Ali says. "But the truth is, the government doesn't provide these services here. Unlike formal estates, we don't have a structured county waste collection system. So we stepped in as community members to fill that gap."
The Kenya National Waste Pickers Welfare Association, formed in 2021, is lobbying for the inclusion of waste pickers in the country's waste management plans. FEMNET has thrown its weight behind them too, linking gender justice to climate action.
"These youths are doing climate justice work," says Anne Tek, Climate justice Coordinator at FEMNET during a recent visit. "They are feminists. They are environmentalists. They are frontline warriors."
In addition to recycling, the group has started urban farming projects - growing vegetables on vertical sack gardens and rooftop spaces.
"In a place like Kibera where food is expensive and land is scarce, farming is revolutionary," says Yusuf. "We grow sukuma wiki, onions and tomatoes on land no one wanted. We even compost food waste to make our own fertilizer."