Europäischer Monat der Fotografie Berlin - Artists (in alphabetic order)

Tracing Waste

Indias refuse collectors

VHS Tempelhof-Schöneberg

organised by: Gesellschaft für Humanistische Fotografie in Zusammenarbeit mit LEZ, BMZ und GTZ

Enrico Fabian: Aus der Serie: Auf den Spuren des Abfalls
2008 © Enrico Fabian
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In a collaboration project with the Indian aid organisation Chintan, the photographer Enrico Fabian spent three months following and documenting the life of the kabaris, the waste recyclers of India. He followed refuse shipments from the megametropolis of New Delhi far beyond the city boundaries, spending weeks on giant waste tips and in a complex system of recycling centres. The kabaris keep the cities alive by carrying away thousands of tons of waste every day and preparing it for recycling in times of ever dwindling natural resources, this is more important than ever.

This documentary collection gives a view of the life of these people, and tells the story of those who are responsible for the removal and processing of waste which may be our waste on a daily basis, working under unimaginable conditions. In spite of the importance and difficulty of their work, the kabaris have an inadequate income and are treated as social outcasts.