Waste Work: Event Organized by York Centre for Asian Research

The York Centre for Asian Research (YCAR) at York University presents a two-day international symposium examining the global politics of waste, labour, and inequality.

Titled Waste/Work: Race, Caste, and Labour in the New Global Politics of Disposability, this symposium brings together leading scholars, practitioners, and policy experts to explore how expanding waste economies are reshaping labour relations, environmental governance, and systems of inequality across the globe.

At a time when global waste is rapidly increasing, this event asks urgent questions:
Who does waste work? Under what conditions? And how are race, caste, gender, and class embedded in emerging “circular economy” models?

The symposium will feature interdisciplinary perspectives from anthropology, geography, sociology, and related fields, with case studies from South Asia, North Africa, Europe, Latin America, and North America. Topics include waste infrastructures, labour precarity, surveillance, and the politics of environmental sustainability.

By centring the lives and labour of those who work with waste, the symposium challenges dominant narratives of green transition and opens space for more just and equitable futures.

🎤 Keynote Speakers

Keynotes are open to the public. Please register.

Opening Keynote

🗓 April 10, 2026 | 9:30 AM

Dr. Josh Lepawsky
Memorial University of Newfoundland
Delete/Ignore: What Counts as Waste and Work in the New Global Politics of Disposability

Closing Keynote

🗓 April 11, 2026 | 9:30 AM

Dr. Vinay Gidwani
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Waste Work as Infrastructural Labour Amidst the Ruins of Accumulation

👥 Organizers

• Dr. Shubhra Gururani
• Dr. Harsha Anantharaman

📩 Contact

For inquiries: [email protected]

🤝 Sponsors & Support

The event is sponsored by a SSHRC Connection Grant. Co-sponsors include:

• LA&PS Research
• EUC Research
• York International
• The City Institute

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Host or Publisher York Centre for Asian Research