Amazon, International Paper, Starbucks Join The Recycling Partnership

Amazon, International Paper, and Starbucks Coffee Co. have joined on as new funding partners of The Recycling Partnership (Falls Church, Va., USA), a rapidly growing national nonprofit that leverages corporate investment to transform recycling for good in hundreds of communities across the country. By supporting The Recycling Partnership, these major brands along with 34 other companies including Coca-Cola, Target, Pepsi, and P&G are helping create more circular economy jobs, more material recovery, and stronger, more equitable communities.

"Amazon, International Paper, and Starbucks Coffee Co. have stepped up to the plate by dedicating dollars to create healthier communities through recycling," said Keefe Harrison, CEO of The Recycling Partnership. "We are empowered by the growing list of companies and communities that trust The Recycling Partnership to deliver swift, measurable change. They understand that collaboration is essential for building stronger solutions to environmental and community concerns, including recycling."

In just four years, The Recycling Partnership has leveraged $29 million in infrastructure to support 640 communities and counting to improve access to recycling and increase quality of recyclables. The growing groundswell of support from partners like Amazon, International Paper, and Starbucks shows that leading companies, across and within industries, want to invest in recycling solutions that create positive environmental, economic, and social change.

"At Starbucks we understand the power of working together to achieve complex sustainability goals," said Rebecca Zimmer, global director of environment at Starbucks. "We are proud to join The Recycling Partnership, to leverage their capability of creating change at the community level in support of the development of a city by city infrastructure that will make recycling a reality, everywhere."

The Recycling Partnership’s goal is to help every family in America recycle and recycle well, so that the country can double its current recycling rate and capture 22 million more tons of recyclables per year, avoid 50 million metric tons of greenhouse gas annually, and save $250 million in contamination costs every year.

"As one of the world’s leading producers of renewable, fiber-based packaging, pulp and paper, we are committed to strengthening our people and the communities where we live and work, using all resources responsibly and efficiently and ensuring our businesses are safe, successful, and sustainable for generations to come," said Aimee Gregg, general manager recycling at International Paper. "Working with organizations like The Recycling Partnership, help us meet these commitments."

Companies that are making sustainability part of their corporate goals are the future of American business, according to Harrison.

"We’ve spent more than 10 years at Amazon on innovations like Frustration-Free Packaging that help us eliminate waste, ensure products arrive intact, are easy to open, and are 100% recyclable," said Trent Huntington, sustainability manager at Amazon. "We’re excited to work with The Recycling Partnership to improve recycling efforts in communities across the nation—a step that is good for customers, good for business, and good for the environment."

From Portland, Me., to Chicago, Ill., to Santa Fe, N.M., The Recycling Partnership has already impacted a quarter of the U.S. population through its recycling solutions.

"There is an equation for sustainable recycling success and the Partnership is making it happen," said Harrison. "The more support we receive from leading companies and organizations, the more people we can impact. The more people we impact, the healthier our economy and planet will be in the future."

The Recycling Partnership is a national nonprofit organization that leverages corporate partner funding to transform recycling for good in cities and towns all across America. As the only organization in the country that engages the full recycling supply chain from the corporations that manufacture products and packaging to local governments charged with recycling to industry end markets, haulers, material recovery facilities, and converters, the Recycling Partnership positively impacts recycling at every step in the process. By the end of 2018, The Recycling Partnership expects to have served 750 communities with tools, resources, and technical support, provided 500,000 recycling carts, reached 40 million households, and helped companies and cities invest more than $33 million in recycling infrastructure.