September is recycling month!
For most people September heralds the start of Autumn, schools going back and nights getting shorter, but for those of us working in recycling, September is the month when we get really excited about two major events taking place.
In the recycling world, September means two things: Recycle Week (14-20 Sep) and RWM (16-17 Sep).
This year, Recycle Week will be celebrating its 22nd year. Organised by WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) via the Recycle Now campaign, its aim is to put the spotlight on the waste and recycling industries. The goal is to inspire the public to recycle more by highlighting different items that can be recycled, and how to do it. The campaign also promotes the circular economy by explaining what happens to items when they are recycled.
Over 200 local authorities took part in Recycle Week last year by running their own campaigns targeted at their residents and businesses. WRAP provides a free tool kit featuring digital assets, posters, social media graphics, videos, and suggested social copy to make it as easy as possible for councils to participate. This year sees the continuation of the “Rescue Me, Recycle!” Campaign, with new character “Neil the Peel” (a banana skin representing food waste) joining other characters in a bid to make recycling more relevant to the younger generation.
At Casepak we will be celebrating Recycle Week with a series of posts about some of the unsung heroes of recycling – namely our brilliant staff! Keep your eyes peeled on social media as their achievements are highlighted.
Also being held during Recycle Week is RWM Expo, the annual recycling industry conference on 16-17 September. Held at the NEC in Birmingham, RWM is the UK’s leading event for waste and recycling, with more than 13,000 attendees over the two days.
Facilitated in partnership with leading sector organisations, including the Chartered Institute of Wastes Management and Environmental Services Association, RWM is where the industry meets up to discuss the critical issues shaping waste and resource management.
Members of Casepak’s team will once again be prominent at RWM, at the forefront of discovering the new technologies driving change in the industry, promoting our own services and working with others to help find practical solutions to some of the sector’s key challenges.
So, while blissfully hot days and summer holidays retreat into distant memories, for the recycling industry September is a month to congregate, celebrate, promote and educate to keep pushing recycling up the agenda and discover new and exciting ways to rescue valuable resources from the general waste bin.