This doctoral research project examines how smart waste management (SWM) can promote low-carbon, inclusive and resilient urban futures in Latin America. Waste contributes significantly to the global 'triple planetary crisis' of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), nearly half of municipal waste is mismanaged, resulting in severe health, environmental and socio-economic consequences, particularly for marginalised communities. Modernising waste systems is therefore an environmental necessity and a strategic opportunity for sustainable urban development. SWM is conceptualised in this research as the integration of digital technologies, data-driven decision-making and participatory governance. Current research shows that such systems can improve efficiency, reduce emissions, and create economic opportunities for disadvantaged groups. They also enable waste-to-energy strategies that transform waste into renewable energy carriers, such as biogas, biomethane, biodiesel, ethanol and hydrogen. Building on this, the research explores how digital tools and IoT solutions can improve operational efficiency, the contribution of waste-to-energy to reducing emissions and generating energy, and how inclusive systems can include informal waste collectors and vulnerable communities. The research also examines the political and institutional dynamics that shape implementation, the barriers to scaling SWM and the strategies for overcoming them, and the role of climate finance and regulatory frameworks in ensuring long-term sustainability. Methodologically, the study adopts a mixed-methods, interdisciplinary approach. Comparative case studies in Brazil, Germany and a third international location will combine qualitative interviews with policymakers, waste workers and community stakeholders with quantitative modelling of waste-to-energy scenarios. Policy analysis frameworks will be complemented by postcolonial urbanism, urban political ecology and intersectionality to reveal how governance practices, global asymmetries and structural inequalities influence outcomes. Expected results include a scalable governance model for inclusive waste systems, policy briefs for decision-makers and a potential digital tool to track waste-to-energy contributions to climate goals. Furthermore, by bridging technological innovation, ecological justice, and social inclusion, the project will advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 7, 11, 12 and 13) and align with strategies such as Germany’s Circular Economy Action Plan, the European Green Deal and Brazil’s Energy Transition Programme. Ultimately, the project positions SWM not merely as a technical solution, but as a catalyst for ecological justice, urban resilience, and equitable, low-carbon transitions.

• Öffentliche Politik und Governance
• Datengetriebene Regierung
• Digitalisierung und Smart-City-Innovationen
• Soziale Ungleichheiten
• Inklusion und Intersektionalität
• Umweltgerechtigkeit
• Klimapolitik, und Abfallmanagement
• Urbane Commons
• Partizipation und Soziokratie

Martucci Lopes, J. F. (2024). Bedarfe erheben - Participation fördern. In M. Balthes, C. Höckesfeld & L. Klimesch (Eds.), selbst. bestimmt. wohnen. Augsburg: Tür an Tür-Integrationsprojekte gGmbH

Martucci Lopes, J. F. (2023). A valentia que me faltava (Der Mut, die mir fehlte). São Paulo, Brasilien: Folhas de Relva