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NRC News and Events
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Resource Recycling Conference Discount for NRC Members!
Join Us Online at the Resource Recycling Conference! This year's Resource Recycling Conference is being held in a virtual format Aug. 4-5, offering top analysis and connection for municipal recycling leaders as the industry continues to transform amid the pandemic.
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NRC is excited to be organizing a panel discussion on how the recycling sector can align with the national push for infrastructure development. That's just one of many top-tier sessions being set for the virtual Resource Recycling Conference. Other topics on the schedule include: The evolving policy landscape; Equity and environmental justice in local programs; Multi-family collection best practices; Successful contamination campaigns; & Much more!
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Members of NRC are eligible for a special registration rate of $200 if they sign up by July 15. That's a 20% savings off the regular registration. Use this link to get signed up at the special NRC rate today! Visit rrconference.com for more information.
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Textile Recycling – Opportunities Against the Struggle
by Marialyce Pedersen, NRC Board of Directors
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Textile industries connected to fashion sustained a wallop during the pandemic, with a 27 to 30 percent reduction in revenues predicted by analysts for 2020, and an unclear path to recovery amidst lingering consumer economic constraints, as well as continued supply chain disruptions in textile-producing countries still experiencing high rates of COVID-19.
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Recyclers and zero waste advocates are celebrating increased pressure for textile durability and repairability; growth in online clothing resale businesses and consumer acceptance of secondhand; and more emphasis on consumer responsibility to reduce life-cycle impacts by washing less and in cold water and then line-drying garments. Policies and industry-accessible tools which guide and reward best practices at the highest levels have been welcome as well, along with end-of-life regulations emerging in Europe and possibly the US in the near future too.
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Recycling is expensive and it isn’t enough. Low-priced new styles flood the market, with 52 micro-seasons per year, meaning less utilization per garment (which most of us witness in our own closets and drawers). Microplastic fibers that shed from laundering polyester garments are showing up in water samples around the globe. The importance of a responsible management hierarchy—responsible production, waste prevention, reuse and then recycling of textiles—is increasingly being recognized, along with environmental justice (labor and pollution) issues.
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*An incorrect version of this article was sent to some readers; please reference this corrected version and accept our apologies!
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Message from Our Newest NRC Team Member, Sachi!
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Hi Everyone! My name is Sachi Segan (she/her/hers) and I am excited to be NRC's new intern. I will be helping NRC with website development, social media, outreach, research and more. I am currently a senior undergraduate student at SUNY-ESF majoring in Environmental Studies and minoring in Renewable Energy. I also lead a small (but passionate) student organization called Green Campus Initiative at ESF where our mission is to inspire and educate more students to make environmentally conscious decisions. In my free time, you can catch me outside, under a tree, or crafting something zero-waste inspired for my house. I'm excited to work with NRC and learn!
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Sign the Petition to Support Recycling Is Infrastructure Bill!
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The National Recycling Coalition (NRC) joined over 150 organizations and individuals in signing on to a letter initiated by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and Zero Waste USA asking President Biden and Vice President Harris to establish policies and programs for waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting that will stem climate disruption, address racial justice, and create thousands of jobs throughout the country.
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We joined together to ask the Biden-Harris Administration to consider these items in a stimulus package, infrastructure bill, racial justice and/or climate change legislation. Copies of this letter were also sent to Congress for them to advocate for and include in proposed legislation, such as the Clean Future Act and bills being developed now on infrastructure such as the American Jobs Plan. Your support will help the Congress understand how important this is.
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Packaging Disruptions for Good?
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Non-profit news organization Marketplace aired a feature on May 10, How Covid 19 might change packaging for good, and host Kai Ryssdal and Maria Hollenhorst asked Matt Reynolds, an editor at Packaging World, to discuss how packaging may be “ripe for disruption,” after a year of cardboard delivery packages piling up from the pandemic. Reynolds responded that “people are aware of packaging, and as such, they’re asking brands to be more aware of it and address sustainability as a function not only of the product contained in the container, but of the container itself.” Reynolds introduced the industry term, Ships in Own Container (SIOC), citing the example of Procter & Gamble’s Tide Eco-Box, and also discussed packaging starter kits with durable refillable packaging. He anticipates “pent-up innovation” to be on display this September at Pack Expo in Las Vegas.
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Call for Proposals! National Zero Waste Conference
The National Zero Waste Virtual Conference is a virtual two-day educational and networking event organized by the National Recycling Coalition and Zero Waste USA. We are soliciting proposals for speaker presentations on cutting edge topics within Zero Waste. If you are interested in presenting on a topic at the National Zero Waste Conference, please submit your proposal via this Google Form by Tuesday, June 1, 2021.
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Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Efforts Growing Among RO's
State, regional and national recycling organizations are addressing Environmental Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion head-on.
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NERC - The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) recently distributed a survey to assess training needs for Diversity, Inclusion. & Racial Equity in the Solid Waste & Recycling Community. The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC), in collaboration with Michigan Sustainable Business Forum, and other partners, is intending to develop a national – virtual – training on diversity, inclusion, and racial equity in the recycling and solid waste communities. To be sure that the content of the training is as valuable as possible, a brief survey was developed to solicit input from the industry. The survey closed May 10th, and results will be used to develop future training. For more information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC Assistant Director.
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CRA - The Carolina Recycling Association (CRA) held its inaugural Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (D, E & I) Roundtable during its virtual conference earlier this month as part if a D,E & I Action Plan. The plan includes formation of a permanent Advisory Council, voluntary demographic data collection from members, and various scholarships for Minority Serving Institutions, Minority & Women Owned Businesses, among others. For more information, contact Mary McClellan, CRA Executive Director.
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NRC - The National Recycling Coalition (NRC) continues efforts of the JEDI Council, which is definitely the coolest acronym ever (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion). NRC recently appointed a new chair of the JEDI Council, with NRC board member Olivia Sanchez, Recycling and Outreach Program Coordinator, Riverside County (CA) taking the lead. NRC is looking for members to support the council, so please reach out to Olivia Sanchez to get involved in the JEDI Council.
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Tell us what your organization is doing to advance Diversity, Equity & Inclusion!
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Flexible Packaging Roadmap
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The Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) released a new report in May 2021, A Flexible Packaging Path to a Circular Economy: Flexible Packaging Sustainability Roadmap. Designed for FPA members as well as policymakers, NGOs, consumer product companies, consumers, municipalities and other associations, the industry organization’s suite of materials explores the future of sustainability and flexible packaging through 2030, including the results of new life cycle analysis indicating reduced environmental impacts of flexible packaging compared to other container options.
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Signatories Still Needed on Biden/Harris Letter of Support
*Please share with your networks, sign-on for Earth Day.*
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Environmental colleagues and eNGOs are urging National Recycling Coalition members and associates to sign a letter asking President Biden and Vice President Harris to establish policies and programs for waste reduction and recycling that will stem climate disruption, address racial justice and create thousands of jobs throughout the country. Signatories are asking the new Administration to consider these items: in a stimulus package; integrated into climate change legislation; as part of an infrastructure bill; and/or within initiatives promoting racial justice. Individuals and organizations can sign onto the letter now!
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