The Garbage Lady is available to "talk trash."
Jodi Taitt
The Garbage Lady & President
JL Taitt & Associates, Inc.
"Garbage is the cultural, social, economic and political signature
of a people."
"As I traveled throughout the Caribbean, I learned that there is 'rich' trash and 'poor' trash."
"This garbage, born of humanity, had been rejected by its mother. I was in love with an orphan."
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HOW I FELL IN LOVE WITH TRASH
A Message from Jodi Taitt
copyright 2004 Jodi Taitt, The Garbage LadyTM
Twenty years ago I fell in love with trash. I was on my return trip home to Minnesota after completing two tours as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Barbados, West Indies. As I entered the United States through the Miami airport, a customs official threw his half-eaten sandwich into a trash can full of paper plates, plastic cups, glossy magazines, newspapers and a lot more food waste. At that moment, my heart beat a little faster. The customs official affirmed what I had observed while living and working in a developing country. Garbage is the cultural, social, economic and political signature of a people.
Peace Corps Volunteer Experience in the Caribbean
For over three years, I was on staff at the Barbados Agricultural Society as a livestock extension officer and traveled the island by motorcycle from farm to farm. I worked with sheep and pig farmers striving to improve their livelihoods. On my motorcycle, I often passed by the island's garbage "dump" and became familiar with its contents. Amidst the discards, I discovered a reflection of the Barbadian people. I saw the food eaten, the clothes worn and the places shopped. As I traveled throughout the Caribbean to islands varying in economic development, I learned that garbage mirrors the economic well-being of a society. There is "rich" trash and "poor" trash.
Master's Degree in Economics & The Garbage Barge
By 1987, I was completing my Master's Degree in Economics at the University of Minnesota while the "garbage barge" was floating in the New York Harbor. The Mobro, a barge carrying over 3,000 tons of garbage, had been rejected by six states and three countries. The barge continued to float without journey's end because it was believed that the waste contained hazardous materials. The first time I saw the barge flash across a TV newscast, my heart beat with true passion. This garbage, born of humanity, had been rejected by its mother.
I was in love with an orphan.
Jodi Taitt
The Garbage Lady & President
JL Taitt & Associates
Let's Talk Trash!
The Garbage Lady is available to "talk trash" to your group or organization.
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