“If you change one thing about yourself, you have the potential to change everything!”  This was a closing thought from Brent Lindeque, Good Things Guy and guest speaker at The Glass Recycling Company’s (TGRC) Annual Green Dialogues held last week.

Glass recycling rate stats

The success of TGRC’s dedication to change is highlighted by the latest national glass recycling rate, released at the Green Dialogues, which has now reached 41%. “We are proud to announce the increase in the recycling rate and thank all glass recyclers around South Africa for their commitment to creating a cleaner and more sustainable future,” said Shabeer Jhetam, CEO of TGRC.

The company’s objective is to develop and increase glass recycling in South Africa through the education of our youth, nurturing a recycling habit amongst all South Africans through effective communication, as well as establishing a solid national glass collection infrastructure.

Being the change

Mirroring Lindeque’s positive change rationale, Jhetam explained “The potential to change, even one thing can be significant, and when talking about glass recycling, the possibilities are endless.”

Glass recycling is a habit that is not only easy to adopt, but also has a large impact on the environment. “Through glass recycling and the *returnable bottling system eight out of 10 bottles are prevented from entering landfills every year, a statistic we are very proud of. We are grateful for the tremendous efforts made by many South Africans to reach this statistic,” Jhetam added, “The investment made by TGRC’s shareholders and the majority of brand owners, by investing billions of Rands in the recycling and returnable bottle system, has made this a reality.”

Empowered by recycling

Kojo Baffoe, entrepreneur, writer and storyteller, and fellow guest speaker at The Annual Green Dialogues highlighted the positive impact of communities who have been empowered by recycling, and reasoned these are important stories to be told.

According to Jhetam, it is up to the individual to make a difference. “From the everyday heroes that actively collect glass, or those who simply drop off their glass at local glass banks, the enthusiastic schools that enter our Annual Schools Competition or the man on the street that starts his own recycling business.  As a collective, glass recycling in South Africa is unstoppable.

 

* Returnable bottling system – these are refillable bottles returned by consumers to their retailers which are then refilled by brand owners. Note both returnable and non-returnables bottles are used in South Africa.