A frightening problem: Americans buy more than 272 million kilograms of sweets every year for Halloween at a cost of around $3 billion. And because most curbside recycling programmes cannot process the sweets wrappers, almost all the waste ends up in landfills or in our oceans and waterways.
Scary turns into sweet: One inventive solution to the landfill problem in the US is the Trick or Trash programme from Rubicon, a software company focused on waste, recycling, and sustainability. Here is how it works:
- ♻ Simply order your free Trick or Trash box.
- 🍬 Fill up the box with used sweets wrappers, tape it shut and ship it to specialty recycler g2 revolution using a pre-paid shipping label that comes with your box.
- 📦 UPS ships the boxes using carbon neutral shipping, reducing the carbon footprint of the programme.
- 🎃 You will get a certificate of recycling that shows how much waste you diverted from landfills and access to a library of free educational resources like videos, webinars and even lesson plans. On average, 2-3 kilograms of waste is diverted per box – that is the equivalent of five black bats!
The mission to end waste: Rubicon spent a lot of time thinking about the environmental impact of every aspect of this campaign and carbon neutral shipping was a big piece of the puzzle. ‘We are delighted to work alongside the UPS and g2 revolution teams to make Halloween a greener and cleaner holiday for all’, said Dan Sampson, Rubicon’s chief marketing and communications officer.
Developing global solutions: g2’s mission has been to make recycling easier for communities and businesses everywhere. ‘Our annual partnership with Rubicon and UPS on the Trick or Trash campaign is always a proud moment‘, said Tonya Martin, g2 revolution’s vice president of business development.
Our commitment to the environment: At UPS, sustainability is not just a promise; it is an action plan. Our carbon neutral shipping option supports projects that offset the emissions of the shipment's transport, helping us achieve a lower carbon footprint. We have a responsibility to put sustainability at the core of our operations, and that is why we have committed to 100% carbon neutrality by 2050.
Read all about it:
- Keep sweets wrappers out of landfills with Rubicon.
- Follow along g2 revolution’s sustainability journey.
- Learn more about sustainable services at UPS.