The Cartoneros

Ask any Porteno (Buenos Aires local) about the Cartoneros and you’re sure to get a different answer; but never the less they will have something to say about one of the strangest phenomenon to be seen in all of Argentina, perhaps the world. Simply put, a Cartonero loosely translates as ‘one who recycles cardboard’ - recyclers that descend upon the city at night, pushing and pulling their home made carts (or carritos, which can provide some confusion over the actually name Cartonero) over the cobble stoned streets, searching through thousands and thousands of bags of trash for anything of value to resell. It’s a literal Orewellean representation of that age-old adage ‘One man's trash is another man's treasure’(1). The easiest way for foreigners to perhaps visualize the Cartoneros (besides me showing you pictures) is to think of San Francisco’s fringe homeless population, estimated at 20,ooo persons. Not the panhandelers you see on the major street corners (for they are usually not homeless, just panhanders, which can earn up to $100USD per day) but the guys with the shopping carts looking for recyclable goods. For those of you that know me - think West Oakland and the recycling center across the street from my old house.

But… the Cartoneros of Buenos Aires are a whole new concept in modern day recycling or a direct result of political and economic upheaval. Men, women, children, families - Argentines... having lost everything after the crisis of 2001(2). And then once they have found thier wares, our trash, its back to Constitucion train station to board a special train - El Tren Blanco - which has no seats or no windows, to take them back to the outskirts of the city to sell their wares, some earning up to fifty pesos ($17 USD) per day to provide food and shelter for their familes, only to start over the next day.

But to actually see this cultural phenomenon taking place, to see pregnant women... bellies exposed, laying on piles of trash is really something else. But my question to you is who is at fault, or does that really not matter? And then, what to do of this situation... like in San Francisco? Social services or tough luck? Is it a failing of capitalism or a result of steady and fastidious government coruption? How can we live in a world where our brothers and sisters in the 'Paris of the South' eat trash? I am curious as to what you think and look forward to reading your comments.

1. Not to be confused with the reality TV show Trash to Treasure where teams actual go out and BUY trash to resell. And for those of you that are money-minded and looking at how to give Uncle Sam (or whatever equivalent pop-historical icon) as least amount of money as possible, try this from some trash-talk tax tips.

2. The 2001 economic crisis left nearly twenty five percent of the country out of work and the majority of its citizens below the poverty line en masse, digging through our trash with their bare hands, 40,000 per day here in the capital of Buenos Aires, the same number of taxis on this city's streets. More on this later but for those of you that are interested I highly recommend Paul Blustein’s ‘And the Money Kept Rolling In (And Out)’ – a riveting economic thriller in the vein of John Grisham’s legal dramas – thanks for turning me on to such an important work Ed.