About Global Waste Lab
The waste challenge is growing
Around 2.7 billion people still do not have their waste collected. By 2050, global municipal waste generation is projected to reach 3.8 billion tonnes a year if current trends continue.
Whether rapidly growing towns and cities remain healthy, liveable and resilient will depend in part on whether waste services can keep pace – and whether risks are recognised and addressed early.
Global Waste Lab exists to strengthen the people, knowledge and practical systems needed to meet that challenge.
Why Global Waste Lab exists
After more than 20 years working across waste policy, project design, training and delivery, I kept seeing the same gap.
There was no shortage of knowledge, but too much of it remained concentrated in reports, conferences and short-term consultancy. The people responsible for building and running waste systems did not always have access to the practical guidance, professional support or long-term investment they needed.
I created Global Waste Lab to help close that gap.
We connect global evidence with practical experience, making useful knowledge easier to access, adapt and apply. We help people understand risk, make stronger decisions and build waste systems that are more resilient and more likely to last.
We also want to strengthen waste management expertise within countries and organisations, so that capability remains long after a project or consultancy ends.
Working with local teams to understand materials, processes and practical constraints
What we believe
Waste management is a public service
Waste management affects health, dignity, climate, livelihoods and the places people call home. It should be treated as an essential public service, not an optional extra.
Context matters
Waste systems need to reflect local institutions, markets, geography, culture and working realities. A model that works in one place cannot simply be copied into another.
Lasting change depends on people
Projects are more likely to succeed when the people responsible for them have the knowledge, confidence, resources and support to keep improving them.
This is not about rejecting international expertise. It is about combining wider evidence and specialist knowledge with contextual understanding, realistic finance and long-term ownership.
About the founder
Global Waste Lab was founded by Zoë Lenkiewicz, a waste management specialist with more than 20 years’ experience across local government, international NGOs, community projects, circular economy initiatives and the United Nations.
Zoë has worked internationally across policy, practice and delivery, supporting people and organisations to strengthen waste services, reduce pollution and build practical, lasting systems.
She was lead author of two major United Nations reports:
- Towards Zero Waste
- Beyond an Age of Waste: Global Waste Management Outlook 2024
Her work combines global evidence with practical experience of what it takes for waste systems to function in real conditions.
“Zoë exemplifies the rare combination of professional expertise and deep passion for her work. In every team we’ve worked on together, she has been a driving force, motivating us to deliver our very best.”
Adanna Kalejaye, University of Massachusetts Boston
Experience behind the work
Global Waste Lab draws on experience in waste collection, organics management, plastics recovery, dumpsite risks, community-based services, training, finance, project design and local service delivery.
Zoë is a Chartered Waste Manager, Fellow of CIWM, ISWA member and mentor, and an active contributor to international waste management networks.
Her experience spans United Nations agencies, professional bodies, local authorities, universities, NGOs and practical waste initiatives.
For larger or specialist assignments, Global Waste Lab can also draw on trusted practitioners, regional specialists and professional networks, allowing support to be shaped around the context rather than simply the brief.
Bringing practical realities into global conversations
Global decisions about waste, pollution and circularity need to reflect what is actually possible in places with limited infrastructure, finance and institutional capacity.
Zoë brings practical waste management experience into international policy discussions – and helps translate global ambition into stronger decisions, realistic investment and services that can last.
Zoë presenting at the sixth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6), Nairobi
“During our mission to The Gambia, I saw how quickly Zoë could understand the context and adapt solutions to it. She motivated our team to use resources effectively and helped us move things forward.”
Sofia Lara Schlezak, Chemicals and Waste Management Programme, UNITAR
Three ways to engage
01
Academy
Free, practical learning designed to make waste management knowledge easier to access and apply.
02
Resilience review
A structured way to identify the strengths, gaps and risks that could affect whether a waste project lasts.
03
Studio
Coaching, project reviews and advisory support for people who need more tailored help.
Together, they offer a path from learning, to reflection, to practical action.
Start where you are
Whether you are building your own knowledge, reviewing a live project or looking for practical support, there is a place to begin.