UNICATA

The University of and with Waste Pickers (UNICATA) is a popular education project that aims to create inclusive and accessible learning spaces fostering dialogue, critical thinking, and the co-creation of knowledge. The project also strengthens waste pickers’ participation in waste management and integrates research as a core component of its educational approach.

In Brazil, UNICATA offers a six-module course titled “Participatory Solid Waste Management and Governance with the Inclusion of Waste Pickers for a Sustainable and Just Society”. The course was launched in São Paulo and Brasília in 2023, and by 2025, UNICATA had delivered five course cohorts in each city, issuing a total of 211 certificates across successive modules.

In Canada, UNICATA is based at the Centre for Global Studies and is connected to the Community-Based Research Laboratory in the Department of Geography. The team includes Jutta Gutberlet (Professor), Ana Maria Castro (Post-Doctoral Fellow), and Julia Heins (Undergraduate student). Research is currently being conducted with waste pickers in Victoria as the first step in UNICATA’s international expansion, supporting the co-creation of a locally grounded course.

For more information, visit: https://lnk.bio/unicatacanada