Abstract
This study aimed to develop learning of the elderly’s community waste management, enhance efficiency of community waste management, recommend the guideline to develop learning and increase efficiency of community waste management through the participation of the elderly in the rural central plains of Thailand and create cooperation mechanism of relevant agencies to drive waste management towards accommodation of appropriate learning and increased efficiency of community waste management. It was a mixed research including quantitative and qualitative research, as well as Participatory Action Research (PAR). The data was collected from 291 sample of 19 local administrative organizations in the rural central plains by systematic sampling. The random system was used to acquire policies, activities, projects, potential of community waste management, and participation of the elderly. Afterwards, selection was conducted for the community with potential to develop participation in waste management in parallel with care for the elderly in six provinces in six communities to organize focus group discussions; foster understanding of waste management; tend to various needs to create occupation of waste management with the elderly, with no fewer than 30 people per community; community leaders and relevant personnel of local administrative organizations. Creative activities of community waste management and products made from community waste were set up in addition, enhanc learning network with other communities through participatory action research, lessons learned, and performance assessment of the development of learning and increased efficiency in community waste management; promote occupation by making products out of community waste; prepare the handbook on the elderly’s community waste processing towards value-added creation for dissemination to other communities and network were undertaken. Test information prepared from two rural communities in two provinces, were conducted by doing activities of community waste management and making products from community waste, and by referring to the knowledge from the prepared handbook. Then 90 days later, the research team followed up on the sustainable assessment of community waste management and production of products from community waste to create cooperation mechanism of relevant agencies to drive waste management towards accommodation of appropriate learning and increased efficiency of community waste management. The study findings revealed that for the work on community waste management and care for the elderly of the sample of the local administrative organizations, there were enough personnel at the operating level; personnel had knowledge and ability to perform their work; sufficient equipment, tool, and locations; sufficient budget for operation; for the development of learning and promotion of the elderly’s participation in waste management, the annual operating plan and the plan on the development of learning and promotion of the elderly’s participation in waste community management were formulated where the elderly participated in the planning of community waste management. According to the workshops organized during the field trips, when the elderly learned about waste management from the trainings, they acquired knowledge and understanding of waste separation and recognized waste problems affecting the current environment. The elderly could implement the knowledge and disseminate knowledge and experience of waste separation to their children, grandchildren, and neighbors. The elderly were also interested in the occupation through production and sale of products from waste. They could apply the knowledge of waste recycling system to design and develop products or transform waste into new products to deal with community waste. Consequently, they had hobbies, income, pride in themselves, and attractive communities.
