Step 1 – Learn about the current state of waste management

• Seek support and input from your building manager, principal, and teachers.

• Learn how waste is currently handled and if the school is recycling anything. 

Step 2 – Determine what can be recycled

• Look at the school’s waste to see what can be recycled. This can be as easy as looking in each garbage can and estimating the amount of the different materials, or as thorough as conducting a waste audit.

• Visually inspect various locations where trash is generated or collected: classrooms; kitchen/cafeteria; offices; teachers’ lounge; gyms and stadiums; auditoriums; lobbies; and building dumpsters.

Step 3 – Identify a recycling provider

Find a business or businesses that can pick-up and process recyclables.

Step 4 – Designate a recycling coordinator and support team

Recruit a recycling club or Green Team. This could include the principal, building manager, teachers, and students. Designate a Recycling Coordinator to coordinate the program.

Step 1 – Write a step-by-step guide for recycling in the school

• Decide what material you want to recycle.

• Set program goals (e.g., decrease number of garbage pickups to __ per month, reduce yearly paper usage by __ reams, expand beyond paper recycling to include cartons, bottles and cans).

• Tour the school buildings and grounds to determine where recyclables should be collected and type(s) of recycling receptacles needed at each location. In classrooms you will need containers to collect paper; in the cafeteria, kitchen, teachers’ lounges, gyms, and outdoor sporting areas you will probably need receptacles suitable for cartons, bottles and cans. Don’t forget about the areas that generate cardboard waste. You may even need all-weather receptacles for outdoor areas.

• Determine who will generate and deposit recyclables into recycling receptacles and provide appropriate signage of what can and cannot be recycled.

• Once the recycling receptacles are full, decide where the material is taken. Make sure you designate someone to take the recyclables to the recycling dumpster/tote so they don’t end up in the trash. This could be the responsibility of students, Green Team, facilities personnel, etc. Designate someone to check dumpsters on a regular basis, and call for a pick-up before they reach capacity.

Step 2 – Obtain and place recycling collection containers

Acquire and distribute recycling receptacles. Use only clear liners/bags to collect recyclables. Always put recycling receptacles next to garbage cans and make sure each recycling receptacle is well marked with signs (paper recycling, lunch recycling) to prevent contamination.

Step 1 – Kick off a new program any time of year

• Inform everyone about the program with signage, emails, morning announcements, newsletters, etc. Let people know what can be recycled and where the recycling containers are located.

• Consider having a kick-off event with an assembly or classroom programs.

• Remind everyone of the recycling program at the beginning of each school year.

Step 2 – Monitor for contamination and landfill dumpster usage

• Keep records of how much you are recycling.

• Monitor the recycling containers and check for contamination. Adjust signage if you notice many mistakes.

• Monitor landfill dumpster and decrease pick-ups as needed to make recycling financially sustainable.

Step 3 – Report results and continue promoting program

• Provide positive feedback by informing students, teachers, administrators, parents, and the community of your successes.

• Promote the benefits of recycling  Encourage consistent recycling habitats by hanging posters, including recycling facts in morning announcements, newsletters, etc.

• Consider having recycling contests like a zero waste lunch day where each grade or class competes to produce the least amount of lunch waste.

Step 4 – Reassess program and identify possible improvements

• Set aside time with the Green Team to evaluate what is working and what isn’t. This step may need to be done at intervals throughout the school year, and certainly at the end of every school year.

• Identify, recognize, and share your successes!

• Identify possible improvements and create a plan to implement those changes. This could include ways to reduce contamination in existing recycling bins, reducing garbage service if warranted, or adding new material(s) to be collected for recycling (e.g., adding carton, bottle, and can collection to an existing paper-only program).