| On a global scale, risk mitigation is a buzzword due to continued exposure to increasingly complex and integrated urban risks and vulnerabilities, worsened by the climate crisis and rapid urbanization. Massive flooding remains one of the critical issues that continue to afflict the country and Cebu City would certainly attest to this. With the heightened flood risk, the current Cebu City administration organized the “Task Force Gubat sa Baha” (war against floods) to streamline and integrate the city’s efforts in flood risk mitigation, solid waste management, and river rehabilitation. The program exposed the need to assess Cebu City’s waste management practices, which are complex in itself. The complexities of waste management in the Asian Region, zoom in with the low and middle-income countries, thereby receiving increasing scholarly attention over the past decades, drawing focus on waste as a rather perennial issue and to others, a malady even. In the Philippines, these challenges are considered persistent and enduring. The challenges we encountered are viewed as multifactorial which include exponential growth in waste generation due to rapid urbanization, population growth, and growing consumption; inadequate waste collection and disposal which exacerbates environmental and health concerns; the role of informal waste workers and their integration into the management system; and the need for funding vis-à-vis governance. In Cebu City, waste management receives heavy scrutiny due to the daily volume of trash (nearly 1M kg or 1,000 tons). Projections from Cebu City Government’s 10-year Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP) 2023-2032 are considered conservative thus, no clear baseline information may be deduced to ensure data-driven analysis. Bridging Leadership Framework is utilized as a collaborative approach to leadership in the context of solid waste management, fostering empowerment of the community through collaboration, inclusivity, and accountability. It focuses on the processes of ownership, co-ownership, and co-creation (or co-production). In looking into the crux of the crisis, the different stakeholders have to be identified and more importantly, engaged with local leadership and governance at its core. It is indubitable that the active participation of the community is not only crucial but also inevitable for sustainable waste management. Successful community-led waste management initiatives in local communities in Cebu City and its neighboring cities prove that positive changes can be made with the right goal, motivation, and support. Co-production is critical in the sustainability of solid waste management (SWM) due to its collaborative nature, ensuring effective community-centric solutions. Further, better enforcement of existing regulations and the creation of more innovative policies bolstered by a stronger legal framework are ways forward to ensure sustainability. |