Family crushes cans to make ends meet
Nicklas Ortman and Margeret Garies earn a living by collecting and crushing discarded cans in Windhoek. They sell the recyclable material in bulk to provide food and pay for their children's school needs. Their sons, Immanuel and Joshua Gariseb, occasionally accompany their father on the search. The family often walks to the area around Grove Mall to find cans. This physically demanding work occupies most of their day.
To Nicklas Ortman (49), a discarded can is more than rubbish. It means food on the table, money for his children’s school needs, and another day survived. Ortman and the mother of his children, Margeret Garies (49), make a living by collecting discarded cans around Windhoek, crushing them and selling them in bulk. Their two sons, Immanuel (16) and Joshua Gariseb (12), sometimes join Ortman on the long walk to the area around Grove Mall in search of cans. The family’s work is physically demanding, with the father saying they spend most of their day collecting recyclable material before returning