A significant part of my job managing RecycleMania involved irritating people. Over the twelve years I was involved with the higher ed competition (now Campus Race to Zero Waste), an intern and I would spend hours each week scrolling through the trash and recycling weights submitted by participating schools looking for anomalies. We’d email or call dozens of recycling coordinators to question how they were coming up with their numbers. While many used actual weights, most relied on volume-to-weight formulas for some or all of…

Small acts – when multiplied by many people – can transform the world. Earth is the only thing we all have in common, so let’s work together to protect it! If you’re looking for ways to increase your sustainable habits, this challenge is made for you! We designed a special 30-day challenge that includes 30 small eco-friendly acts that make a major difference to the planet! Here’s how it works: Over the span of 30 days choose one challenge each day to start taking steps…

Avoiding common mistakes that can doom public-facing recycling programs. I used to give away recycling bins for a living. For eleven years I managed grant programs for Keep America Beautiful and the National Recycling Coalition distributing bins to help local communities kickstart recycling in parks and other recreation areas. Like any grant program, my overriding criteria was to select recipients that would result in the greatest impact. Where could a strategic investment put the bins to the best use, accelerating local recycling efforts and recovering…

Buried in my files is a photograph of several college friends proudly unveiling a new recycling station outside the campus library. The year is roughly 1989 and the campus is Humboldt State University in Northern California, where I first cut my teeth as a student recycling volunteer. The bin station was one of a dozen or so we built using plywood to encase 55-gallon drums. Each of the 4-foot tall stations was painted with a unique mural that reflected an environmental theme as well as…

The following is a list of questions that were asked by attendees during our Future of Office Recycling and Waste Webinar, with answers from our panelists. We have organized the questions based on general topics. If you have any questions on Office Recycling and Waste, please reach out to alecc@buschsystems.com to have your questions added to the list! Deskside Has anyone instituted a centralized system during COVID? Amy: Yes, SBM has several clients who have implemented a centralized system while occupancy is low so that…