Dive Brief:
- 75 businesses, municipalities, and recycling industry professionals met in Michigan last week to generate and pitch ideas for recycling. Organized by the Michigan Recycling Coalition (MRC) and Consumers Energy, the session was to boost a statewide competition to meet Gov. Rick Snyder’s 2014 goal of doubling the recycling rate from 20% to 30% in two years.
- Recycle by Design Challenge will be a year-long private-public project, kicking off in early 2016, powered by teams that will receive funding to devise proposals and work with the community to garner support.
- The teams will be supported by advisory groups from Consulting firm IMG Rebel, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the Governor's Recycling Council, consulting firm Resource Recycling Systems, and MRC.
Dive Insight:
Reaching for the statewide recycling goal requires teamwork from individuals, as well as private and public organizations. It requires a cohesive structure and an approach that targets the needs within a given region, which is what this program’s designers had in mind. It is a continuation of sorts of a previous Michigan model calling on multiple sectors.
California, Connecticut and other states have also pursued support from municipalities, their citizens and or businesses to boost state recycling efforts.
In Michigan, a press release stated, "Recycle by Design will foster a grassroots, bottom-up approach that, very early in the process, encourages the private sector to work together with the public sector to collectively develop an approach based on community need, private sector deliverability, and overall value for money."
