I recently graduated from the Sanitation Foundation’s “Trash School” and I cannot stop thinking about it. I love New York. I love cities in general and am fascinated by all of the city services that happen so seamlessly we almost forget the modern miracles performed each day.
So many people take for granted that when they turn on their tap, clean drinkable water will be readily available to them in hot or cold options. Far too few think about waste and trash removal in a city with roughly nine million people, including tourists, and those who commute into NYC each day to work.
I initially heard about the NY Trash Academy sponsored by the Sanitation Foundation a few months ago while reading The City. I heard the Sanitation Foundation was offering a free 10 module online course to discuss everything from the history of the Sanitation department to recycling and composting to snow and trash removal. I learned about European cities at the forefront of garbage can technology as well as the various stations where trash is sorted and processed. All of these complex processes happen on a daily basis to keep NYC clean.
The Department of Sanitation has so many programs to help individuals and buildings recycle everything from clothes to e-waste, that is, all the old electronics likely sitting in a back closet or a drawer in your home. I never thought about the efficiency of truck routes to ensure each neighborhood is serviced properly and equitably. I also never realized just how dangerous it can be on the job as men and women hop on and off a moving truck, in traffic with moving cars, dealing with a truck meant to crush debris, and New Yorkers who sometimes put harmful and hazardous waste in their trash cans instead of properly disposing of the nails, paint, chemicals, and the like.
I could not believe what I learned about my city as well as how so many thousands of people work tirelessly to maintain it so we can decrease the rat population and maintain a modern healthy standard of living. Interestingly enough, the Sanitation Department has an almost military-like structure as far as organization because it was once viewed as not only the second line of defense against disease, but enforcers of public health laws.
The Sanitation Foundation (www.sanitationfoundation.org) has just begun rolling admission for the next cohort of the NY Trash Academy. They ask for a small donation to cover costs if you are able, however, if you are not able to financially contribute you can still enroll in the course. I highly recommend taking the course. I learned so much about NYC and how I can be a better New Yorker on a daily basis.
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of the books “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; and co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.