By Kadiatu A. Sherriff, 2026 Africa Zero Waste Academy Participant
When I joined the Africa Zero Waste Academy, I came with an open mind.
ย I have been working within the waste sector and thinking about the challenges and possible solutions in Liberia for some time. And I knew there was still a lot to learn. And the Academy became much more than a learning programme for me.
It was wonderful meeting young people from across Africa who had come together for different reasons, but with a shared interest in creating better waste systems. We listened, learned and challenged ideas together.
What made the learning particularly meaningful was its practicality. Even when we discussed theory, stories, experiences, and examples from different African countries brought the ideas to life. Some experiences resonated strongly with what we see in Liberia, while others opened my mind to approaches we could explore or adapt in our own context.
Then came the participant presentations.
Different people brought different ideas and solutions, and right there, we could see opportunities for collaboration. Sometimes, you realise that someone else is working on a piece of the same puzzle you have been trying to solve.
And, of course, the facilitators brought so much to the experience. Their knowledge, questions, and experiences pushed many of us beyond simply knowing what the problem is to thinking more deeply about why it exists, who is responsible, and what kinds of solutions can create lasting change.
The Personal Shift
One of my biggest personal shifts was learning to question solutionsโeven some I had previously considered good.
The Academy made me ask myself: Does this solution actually pass the climate test?
Or are we sometimes managing the consequences of a broken system while calling it a solution?
Those questions have stayed with me.
It made me look differently at some of our own methods and the solutions we see around us. A solution should not simply move a problem somewhere else or create another problem in the process. If the end goal is positive change, then we have to be willing to rethink how we get there.
I came home wanting to look at some of our work at Golden Waste Solutions with fresh eyesโnot because everything we have done is wrong, but because there is always room to ask better questions and improve.
I also appreciated the lighter side of the in-person experience. The learning was intense, but moments of laughter, connection, and celebration gave us room to breathe. The launch of FISSWWAG was one of those moments. The cultural expressions, the stories, and the atmosphere reminded me that learning doesn’t always have to happen in a serious room with a notebook in hand. Sometimes, you learn just as much by witnessing people come together, celebrate their identity and share their experiences.
And, of course, there was Culture Night. It was beautiful seeing our different cultures come alive.ย
But beyond thesessions, culturatural exchanges, and food I found myself appreciating something else: meeting people not only as representatives of their countries, but as individuals. I came to know people beyond the country they represented. That made the experience even more meaningful.
I left Ghana with more than notes, certificates and photographs.
I left with WhatsApp contactsโbut not just people to watch on my status.
I left with young people from different parts of Africa with whom I now share something deeper: a common goal and the understanding that, whenever an opportunity or challenge arises, someone in this network may be the right person to call.
Maybe we will collaborate on a project.
Maybe we will share an idea.
Maybe one of us will simply reach out and say, โI think you should look at this.โ
I left with questions, new perspectives, new connections and new possibilities.
And I think the timing could not have been better.
From learning to contribution
Interestingly, shortly after completing the Academy, I had the opportunity to participate in a civil society roundtable convened by the United Nations Office for Sustainable Development (UNOSD), at the request of Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency, as part of discussions around the country’s waste-management system.
I went into that conversation with fresh perspectives.
The Academy did not make me an expert on Liberia’s waste sector overnight. It gave me a stronger lens through which to contribute: looking beyond collection and disposal, and thinking about prevention, recovery, financing, climate impact, policy, people, and the connections between them.
I found myself better prepared to ask questions, share observations from our experience as a local waste enterprise, and listen to what others were seeing from their own positions.
That experience reinforced something I had begun to understand during the Academy:
Everything we do is connected to a larger system.
Writerโs Bio
Kadiatu A. Sherriff is the Founder and President of Golden Waste Solutions Enterprise Inc based in Liberia, where she works to design and implement ways to reduce waste and create income-generating activities for economically vulnerable communities.
