Waste Watch Communicating with Culturally Diverse Groups 14 June, CIWM 2006

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Waste WatchCommunicating with Culturally
Diverse Groups14 June, CIWM 2006

• Kathryn Burall Stillman
• Consultancy Manager

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Waste Watch Consultancy

• Waste Watch Consultancy established in 2002.
• Clients include WRAP ROTATE, Defra WIP LASU,
  WRAP Recycle Now team, and local authorities
• Delivers a diverse array of projects
  communication and technical consultancy and
  research.
• Has carried out wide variety of work on
  communicating with ethnic minority groups on
  recycling
• The WRAP Rotate Guidance Document on Engaging
  black and ethnic minority communities on
  recycling activity
• Work for London Borough of Hounslow
• Work with Slough Borough Councils Sikh and
  Muslim communities.

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BAME Groups

• country of origin, religion, cultural background
  or ethnicity places them outside the white
  majority society within the UK
• not limited to non-white minority groups
• covers people born within and outside UK
• 19912001 UKs minority ethnic population grew
  by 1.3m
• Established communities with 2nd, 3rd 4th
  generations more integrated and have self
  identity that includes Britishness
• New migration patterns from Eastern European
  countries within the EU

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Are your assumptions correct?

• Who do you want to target and why?
• Are your assumptions correct?
• Do you have data to support your ideas?
• Defining Hard to Reach and Hard to Engage

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What is Hard to Reach and Hard to Engage?

• Hard to Reach
• Groups with serious physical barriers to easy
  participation in recycling schemes
• These groups must be provided with easier-to-use
  facilities before being engaged about recycling
  issues
• Primarily an operational issue making the
  service easier/more convenient
• Hard to Engage
• Groups which are difficult to communicate with
  because of culture, language or lifestyle
  barriers
• These people within these groups need easy-to-use
  recycling facilities and specially tailored
  communications
• Primarily a communications issue providing they
  already have access to adequate recycling
  services
• . However, some individuals belong to both

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What is Hard to Reach and Hard to Engage?

• Hard to reach AND engage
• Groups living in challenging service environments
  and are difficult to communicate with because of
  culture, language or lifestyle barriers.
• Examples include groups living in high-rise
  estates or back to back housing. These groups
  need easy-to-use recycling facilities and
  specially tailored and targeted communications
• Operational and communication issues MUST be
  addressed simultaneously

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BAME groups in low performing areas

• These include areas with low participation and/or
  high levels of contamination
• Some BAME audiences may be Hard to Reach AND
  Engage
• Motivations for recycling will be different.
• Less about the helping the environment in a
  wider/global sense
• More about how recycling will benefit their local
  neighbourhood
• Adapt communications messages to fit with low
  performing areas.
• However, broader solutions may also be required
  in particularly difficult areas
• Incentives/encouragement
• Prize draw or reward schemes, doorsteppers or
  recycling wardens
• Disincentives
• System of sanctions, compulsory recycling

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How to Engage BME Groups

• Identifying groups
• Cross-departmental facilitation
• Identify relevant places of worship
• Establishing a relationship
• Arrange a face-to-face meeting
• Build trust with communities
• Long term programme to get results

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Communications Methods
Research Leaflets and written material Working
with communities
Presentations and events
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Communication Methods
Advertising and PR
Door stepping
Using ethnic media
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Summary

• High level of diversity and barriers to
  participation
• Vital to research your area
• Direct and sustained contact is most effective
• Advertising and PR secondary
• Good relationship with key local groups
• Care translating promotional material
• Investigate alternatives to translation
• Work with community networks
• How cultural differences impact on
  communication

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Case Study 1 Preston City Council

• 12 Ethnic minority background 9 Indian 2
  Pakistan, 1 Bangladesh
• Barriers arent different but some of the
  communication solutions are
• Leaflets
• Is a multilingual leaflet needed?
• Translated leaflets did not increase
  participation
• Multi-lingual helpline not used
• Guidance from religious leaders
• Keeping the environment clean is a religious,
  social and moral duty. Cleanliness is half of
  faith
• The importance of family

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Case Study 1 Preston City Council

• Communication Routes
• Male elders at Friday evening prayer time
• Children at their Koran classes
• Women at mother and toddler groups (re-usable
  nappies)

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Case Study 1 Preston City Council

• New Solutions
• Supplementary messages on leaflets
• Urdu speaking officer
• Tailored education messages financial savings,
  family, environment

• Residents meetings / Mosque meetings more
  flexibility with time

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Case Study 2 Slough Borough Council

• Project Aims
• Over a third of Sloughs population is
  represented by Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME)
  groups Muslim (13.4), Sikh, (9.1) and Hindu
  (4.1).
• No difference in participation between white
  British population and minority ethnic groups
• Council keen to ensure communications effective
  across all sectors of boroughs diverse
  population.
• Waste Watch carried out consultation exercise
  with representatives of the boroughs Sikh and
  Muslim communities. included discussion guide and
  facilitation at discussion groups

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Case Study 2 Slough Borough Council

• Qualitative findings
• 6 discussion groups 3 with Sikh residents, 3
  with Muslim residents.
• Findings from each group were very similar
• Recall of Council leaflet negligible. Providing
  translations in Urdu and Punjabi, along with
  clearer pictures were suggested.
• The groups felt that using mosques and temples to
  promote recycling to the community would be
  productive
• Plus more active promotion such as providing
  recycling talks and tying into community events
  and local radio stations (e.g. Ramadan radio)
• Greater emphasis should be placed on waste
  education for younger children

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Case Study 2 Slough Borough Council

• Communications recommendations
• Continue to provide translated leaflets, but
  also use pictures to illustrate how the service
  should be used. Make the translation panel larger
  and easier to find.
• Form relationships with faith and community
  centres and use them as a route to the community.
• Tie recycling messages with activities for
  religious festivals,
• Take part in existing community events relevant
  to the Sikh and Muslim communities, or organise
  events in Slough town centre.
• Work with local schools to develop a waste
  education programme for younger children.

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An overview of help available

• WRAP Rotate Guidance Document on Engaging black
  and ethnic minority ethnic communities on
  recycling activity
• Work that ROTATE has done with specific councils
• Learning from other councils community groups

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Thank you
Kathryn Burall Stillman Consultancy Manager 020
7549 0328, kathryn_at_wastewatch.org.uk Steve
Haugh Senior Consultant 020 7549 0342,
steveh_at_wastewatch.org.uk