STEP ONE:
Organize a Sustainability Team

Building a Sustainability Team is the first step you should take when it comes to your Recycling program. This is a large project and the more hands you have on deck the better! Everyone tends to have different strengths to bring to the team, so be sure to reach out to staff members from a variety of departments and students to make your program great! The more diverse your group is, the more potential your program will have.

Faculty and custodial staff are great people to have by your side as they will most likely have the best idea of what your recycling program currently looks like. They might even already have great ideas for improvement options.

While asking students and staff to volunteer to be a part of your Sustainability Team is one strategy, sometimes it is easier to give this job to an entire class to take on for the year. They are the ones who conduct audits and champion your program, all while working towards a common goal and gaining school credits!

If you do decide to ask for volunteers, we've created an editable (not edible...) "Join our Sustainability Team" email template, poster and handout for you to use to build the best sustainability team of all time:

Once you have your group together, there are key roles and responsibilities that will need to be assigned. Take advantage of the strengths and expertise that each member brings to the table and assign rolls accordingly.

Once roles and responsibilities have been delegated, it is time to create a course of action to get your program off the ground.

Follow our checklist and create a timeline for when you’d like to reach certain milestones or when you’d like to have certain goals completed. Be sure to follow this timeline closely to ensure everything stays on track and you can launch your Recycling program as soon and as smoothly as possible.

The first thing you should do once you have your team established is plan a meeting to discuss your first Recycling & Waste Audit. There will be a lot of planning involved to make sure you have a smooth audit, so scheduling a meeting as soon as possible to iron out any details is something that your team should prioritize. We recommend having your first meeting within the first couple of weeks of a new semester when everyone is fresh and excited! Once this meeting is set, you're ready to move on to Step Two: Conduct a Recycling & Waste Audit!