In this Critical conversation, Academy Chief Executive, Dr Hayaatun Sillem CBE, discussed with Professor Desta Mebratu, Extraordinary Professor at the Center for Sustainability Transition at Stellenbosch University, and Aditi Ramola, Tecnical Director at the International Solid Waste Association, the impact of this dangerous and complex problem, and explore what engineers and wider society can do to address it, whilst ensuring that communities and livelihoods are protected. Addressing open burning of waste is part of the Engineering X Safer End of Engineered Life programme.
The uncontrolled burning of waste takes place worldwide, particularly in low- and middle- income countries where collection and disposal systems are often poor or completely absent. This underdiscussed practice has severe health impacts for waste workers and communities; it is estimated that one person dies every 30 seconds in low- and middle- income countries due to the mismanagement of waste and open burning. Furthermore, open burning produces a wide range of atmospheric pollutants that contribute significantly to climate change with estimates of a scale equivalent to 2-10% of global CO2Eq emissions: potentially double the impact of aviation but attracting a fraction of the attention and finance.
Desta Mebratu
Aditi Ramola
Dr Hayaatun Sillem CBE
Hayaatun is CEO of the Royal Academy of Engineering and Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering Foundation. She co-chairs with the Science Minister the government’s Business Innovation Forum and co-chaired with Sir Lewis Hamilton his Commission on improving Black representation in motorsport. She is a trustee of various charities, member of the government’s Levelling Up Advisory Council and Digital Skills Council and NXD at construction company Laing O’Rourke. She has been named as one of the ‘Inspiring 50’ women in tech in Europe and one of the most influential women in both UK engineering and UK tech. She has a Masters in Biochemistry (MBiochem) from Oxford and a PhD from Cancer Research UK/UCL. She is a Fellow of the IET, Honorary Professor at UCL and Honorary Fellow at The Queen’s College, Oxford. She has received honorary doctorates from UCL, Imperial College London, Newcastle, Brunel, Huddersfield and Southampton, as well as a Science Suffrage Award and the Engineering Professor’s Council President’s Medal. She was a finalist for the Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award and was made a CBE for services to International Engineering in 2019. Prior to her current roles, she was Deputy CEO at the Academy and served as Committee Specialist and later Specialist Adviser to the House of Commons Science & Technology Committee.