Cairo, Egypt’s largest city, has not had any garbage collection companies. Instead they have relied on people known as the Zaballeen.

The Zaballeen are Cairo’s lower class. All 60,000 of them make their living by recycling garbage into raw materials that are then exported to countries like France and Belgium. They are the best at what they do, recycling around 80% of the garbage they collect. Cairo’s residents pay a small fee for the Zaballeen to come collect their garbage.

Recently foreign refuse companies have moved in and taken away the Zaballeen’s contract with the government. These foreign companies only recycle around 20% of the garbage they collect. Now you may ask why go with these companies, which don’t recycle nearly as much as the Zaballeen. The Zaballeen use almost ancient methods of garbage collection and recycling compared to the modern methods of these foreign refuse companies. Although the Zaballeen are more efficient, Cairo’s officials prefer the modern methods of the foreign refuse companies. After all, excessive garbage and the globalization of trade is a worldwide problem.

Garbage Dreams is a documentary film that follows the lives of three young Zaballeen boys growing up as their garbage and lifestyle are being taken away. These boys are all trying to support their families and save the Zaballeen. The local school called the Garbage School not only teaches the children how to read and write, but they also learn how to efficiently recycle. The Garbage School also sends students to America and England so they can learn about modern recycling methods and apply what they learn to help the Zaballeen modernize to compete with the modern companies.

Many of them also deal with family struggles. All of the Zaballeen are way below the poverty line. For example, a young man’s apartment is built by his father on the roof of their family home. Most likely, he will live there for all of his life. One of the most eye-opening quotes from the movie shows just how poor these people really are. A young boy yells to his sister across the rice bowl in the middle of the floor, “Give me the rest! You ate last night and I didn’t.”

It may be frustrating reading this article from a comfortable couch. To get a better experience of the hardships faced by the Zaballeen, see the Garbage Dreams simulated online game on the PBS website. In the game you must be as efficient as the Zaballeen and you aren’t given much time to do it. It is much more challenging than it seems, trying to keep your income above monthly costs while making your recycling as efficient as possible to support your family and community.

Garbage Dreams is now available on DVD. I strongly suggest you watch it. It is very moving and shows you another perspective of life, one in which one man’s trash truly is another man’s treasure. I only gave it a four out of five rating because at times it is hard to follow the story line of the movie, but otherwise the movie is flawless. I hope you are moved in the same way I was.