Do you care about climate change, the environment, the process of recycling, how to recycle correctly, conscious consumption, resource conservation, educating people and sustainable packaging? Do you want to be more knowledgeable about any of the items listed above and share with others in Lincoln and Lancaster County? Then you should join the Bin Buddies Team!
Knowledge is power and there are many ways for Bin Buddies to help provide public education in our community. Learn more about each role below, and choose one that fits your engagement style.
Bin Buddies Volunteer at Consumer Recyclables Collection Sites
Volunteer to be on-site at one of the City Consumer Recyclable Collection sites. Your volunteering efforts will help educate the public about how what can and can’t go into the recycling bins. Once signed up, our office will contact you and provide you event times/locations for your participation.
This effort will help increase the safety of our citizens at City sites, educate those visiting the site on what can and can’t be recycled and will help reduce illegal dumping and littered recyclables that end up on ground.
Sign up to be a Bin Buddies Volunteer
Distribute Waste Reduction Guides
Our Waste Reduction Guides(PDF, 8MB) are printed annually on 100% PCW paper, and serve as a tool to help the public understand how to reduce, reuse, and recycle in our community. The guide also has a list of items that can be recycled and where to take other waste for proper disposal. We really want community members to read and share the guide, then recycle the product when they are done with it, and we need your help to get them into our community! If you have a location where our Waste Reduction Guides can be distributed, please sign up and let us know how many you can share!
Sign up to be a Bin Buddies Volunteer
Recycling Right Advocate
Do you know friends, family, businesses or organizations that may not be recycling right? Being a Recycling Right Advocate means that you pledge to speak up and educate others you interact with in your daily life on the do’s and don’ts of recycling.
Recycling right is critical for the recycling infrastructure. Our team will help you become confident in your knowledge of how to recycle so you can share your expertise with those you come in contact with.
Sign up to be a Bin Buddies Volunteer
Conscious Consumer Advocate
Change is hard. Many times, change will not occur without customer feedback to encourage the desired outcome. That is where we need your help! By signing up to be a Conscious Consumer Advocate, you are pledging your time to call, email, or mail letters to businesses that are using less desirable packing products, such as Styrofoam, that can not be recycled or composted and must be landfilled. Letters should be a personal reflection on why you wish the company change their packaging style. You are consumer and your opinions matter. With this Bin Buddies opportunity, you are pledging to act on your concerns.
Sign up to be a Bin Buddies Volunteer
Why Are Bin Buddies Needed?
Waste diversion, removing materials from the waste stream deemed for the landfill and instead reducing, reusing, recycling or composting the item, and conscious consumption helps to reduce our impact on the plant. It can help reduce carbon emissions and empower others to know they are doing the right thing. Additionally, placing nonrecyclable items such as food scraps, plastic bags, textiles and more, is called contamination. Too much contamination disrupts the entire recycling process and makes it harder for the recycling processor to sort through all of the recycling received by the company.
Bin Buddies help to provide critical public education the community on how to properly divert materials and to recycling right. Recycling our materials right will ensure that material has the opportunity to be made into something new. Help our office educate your network today by volunteering to become a part of the Bin Buddies team!