This blog has often been based on an email exchange which evolves (from my author's potential point of view) as my borderline "rant". But it's because a question has engaged me personally that I write the long and detailed response - not for monetary reasons but because of the personal social engagement of a person whose eyes I have seen "light up." The sun does not revolve around the earth and framing a poor diaspora's scavenging as the first user's moral liability is a journalism play at the amygdala - fear of liability or social guilt.
The Brain's Role in Susceptibility to Poverty Porn
Human susceptibility to "poverty porn" can be traced to the brain's amygdala, which is responsible for processing fear and emotional responses. Images of children scavenging in dumps or surrounded by hazardous waste trigger feelings of guilt, fear, and moral obligation, and a social feeling of potential (monetary and legal) liability. This emotional response often overrides rational analysis, making it easier for sensationalist narratives to take hold. In contrast, the prefrontal cortex, which governs critical thinking and decision-making, is less engaged when emotional stimuli dominate but is associated with jealousy and greed - the monkey with celery angered by the monkey in the next cage, eating grapes. This imbalance can lead well-meaning individuals and organizations to support policies or interventions based on emotionally charged but factually flawed portrayals of developing countries.
Let 's take this opportunity to expand on some critical points regarding global trade, raw materials, and the loaded language surrounding terms like "waste" and "export."
Photo of scrap market in Cairo, 2008 - man selling components for household appliances. Seemed like a lot of work spending all day in the sun to "externalize western waste". There's nothing moving about this photo I took, but taking the time to think about this man, look at the objects someone is buying from him, and the time/volume movement of his trade, does not make for a simple "gotcha" narrative.
Rethinking "Waste" and Its Implications
The word "waste" often serves as a convenient shorthand, but its implications are far from neutral. As Dr. Graham Pickren describes, "waste" functions as a "fetish," assigning responsibility and liability based on social mores rather than actual culpability. For example, if you sell a laptop to an African buyer, you may be asked to certify its functionality and bear responsibility for its risks. But if the same African finds the computer in your garbage, sends it to a cousin overseas, and the exchange is discovered, he is the one who (aka Joe "Hurricane" Benson) might face imprisonment. This creates a skewed system of accountability, which, as Vance Packard discussed in his 1960 book The Waste Makers, often benefits manufacturers and perpetuates harmful cycles of consumption.
China, WTO, and "Waste" as Trade Barriers
The USTR's annual reports, such as the 2022 Report on China's WTO Compliance, repeatedly highlight how China weaponizes the term "waste" to block imports of reusable materials, such as CRTs and rice cookers two decades ago, when the CCP owned CRT furnaces and rice cooker factories and did not want to compete against lower priced, higher quality, reuse and remanufacturing in their own emerging market. This tactic, which uses "dumping" to suggest unfair competition, exploits global fears of environmental externalization. The irony is that many of these products function perfectly, challenging the narrative of "below-cost" dumping that benefits China's domestic industries.
Academic and Analytical Resources
For further exploration, I recommend engaging with resources like Discard Studies and the work of scholars such as:
Dr. Graham Pickren
Dr. Ramzy Kahhat (Lima, Peru)
Dr. Josh Lepawsky, Dr. Josh Goldstein, Dr. Reed Miller, and Dr. Grace Akese
These experts provide valuable data and analysis that counter simplistic narratives about e-waste exports. Searching their work on Academia.edu or reviewing data from organizations like WTO, World Bank, and IMF can offer insights into the nuances of global material flows.
The Myth of Agbogbloshie and Poverty Porn
A case study worth revisiting is the misrepresentation of Agbogbloshie in Ghana. Western media outlets often continue to frame it as an "e-waste dump," amplifying this with emotional imagery of children surrounded by scrap. However, basic data—such as televisions per household in Lagos or Accra—reveals the inconsistency. The absence of CRTs at city dumps contradicts claims of massive imports. The rich narrative of "saving Africa from waste" ironically criminalizes entrepreneurs like Joseph "Hurricane" Benson, who spent months in prison based on faulty assumptions perpetuated by INTERPOL and NGOs like Basel Action Network.
Exposing the Flaws in the 80% Myth
Claims that "80% of e-waste exports are waste" lack empirical grounding. If the U.S. exported all its e-waste, applying the Pareto Principle might suggest high volumes for scrap or disposal. However, diaspora importers pay high shipping and customs fees, ensuring the majority of imports are functional "cores" for reuse. Emotional documentaries like those by Kevin McElvaney exploit this misunderstanding, offering poverty porn instead of factual analysis. When Dr. Grace Akese presented data on TVs per capita and urban land values at a conference, it dismantled McElvaney's narrative and represented a triumph of data over sensationalism.
Conclusion: Fishing for Truth Among Misinformation
This blog reflects my ongoing efforts to engage with academics, policymakers, and journalists to combat misconceptions about global trade and "waste." The language we use matters. It shapes narratives, policies, and ultimately, the lives of those impacted by these decisions. Let's commit to examining the evidence critically, avoiding convenient labels, and recognizing the complex dynamics of global reuse markets.
Most of my blogs start with an email discussion with an academic probing responses to popular press, I get intellectually engaged (rant) and then edit it into a blog removing the reference to the person I'm writing to. So consider this a meta-email I will now massage into a blog (ChatGPT makes that a lot easier these days) and let me know when you have a finished academic piece to publish in DiscardStudies.com and I'll get it in front of the other professors, which is how I built this. Fishing for swordfish, surrounded by perch.
No comments:
Post a Comment