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NERC Blog

In My Opinion: Steps to address diversity in recycling

Today's blog is authored by Mary Ann Remolador, NERC's Assistant Director. The original posting, in Resource Recycling, can be found here.

At the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) Fall 2020 Conference, a plenary session on racial justice in the recycling industry was featured. This session marked a milestone in NERC’s 33-year history – it was the first time racial issues were discussed at one of our events. While some attendees expressed difficulty with understanding the connection between racial justice and recycling, the majority were extremely appreciative and supportive that NERC had taken the plunge and opened the door on such a complex and challenging topic.

The enthusiasm built by this initial discussion encouraged NERC staff to continue the momentum and plan for doing more about diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) issues. In addition to staff undertaking individual initiatives to better understand and learn more about DE&I, we also started working on ways that we could…

Produce Stickers: Are They the Next Straw?

Today's guest blog is authored by Olga Kachook of NERC Advisory Member The Sustainable Packaging Coalition. Second of a three-part series. The original post can be read here.

*This blog is the second in a produce sticker series of three. You can read the first piece: Produce Stickers: A Small but Mighty Problem, here, and the third: Produce Stickers: The Benefits of Going Compostable, here

This second post in our produce sticker series explores innovative alternatives.

Why did straws become the poster child for single-use plastic pollution? Perhaps it was because they are unnecessary for most consumers,…

Produce Stickers: A Small But Mighty Problem

Today's guest blog is authored by Olga Kachook of NERC Advisory Member The Sustainable Packaging Coalition. First of a three-part series. The original post can be read here.

*This blog is the first in a produce sticker series of three. You can read the second piece: Produce Stickers: Are they the Next Straw, here, and the third: Produce Stickers: The Benefits of Going Compostable, here

Plastic produce stickers are ubiquitous. Used on a variety of produce, the stickers are helpful at checkout because they carry important information: price look-up codes, or PLU codes.…

The Intrinsic Link Between Sustainability and ESGs

Today's guest blog was written by ISRI’s VP of Sustainability, Cheryl T. Coleman. The original post can be read here.

For years, sustainability was synonymous with environment, but the concept of sustainability has evolved to encompass so much more. There was, and remains, a huge emphasis on preserving natural resources, environmental compliance, and safety. Today, though, sustainability is also about having a business culture that:

  • Protects the environment;
  • Ensures a diverse staff that receive wages that allow them to thrive, and;
  • Operates with governing principles starting at the CEO level that include business ethics; cybersecurity; health and safety of employees and surrounding communities; and enterprise risk management including continuous monitoring of all threats and opportunities.

We often see these principles summed up through environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria, which are a set of standards for a company’s operations that many investors use…

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