Engage for success

Welcome to day 3 of Recycle Week 2021! Today, we will showcase some of the powerful tools at your disposal, which can be harnessed to improve staff engagement. After all, your co-workers are the main users of your recycling scheme, so it is important they know what to recycle and the benefits this has on people and the planet.

User engagement plays a key part in solving recycling mishaps. Despite the increasing awareness of recycling, this is not always translated into consumer action. This highlights that more must be done.

We need to nudge habits by educating people in exciting and powerful ways.

Changing human behavior is notoriously difficult. The jury is in that alas, it does not only take 28 days to form a new habit. Propelling intent forward to action is the biggest hurdle, but we’re never one to shy away from a challenge.

We use a hands-on approach, tapping into consumer motivations, understanding the power of simplicity, and recognising that one size does not fit all. We strategise on a long-term basis for maximum success.

• Ensure you communicate the right things to the right teams. Different people in your building will require different recycling instructions. For example office vs cleaning staff
• Embrace the power of video. Circulate an engaging recycling video to captivate people’s attention
• Take your colleagues for a walking tour of the office recycling system to familiarise them with the bins and signage – include this in your induction plans to get good behaviours in place from the very start
• Put together a recycling competition or quiz on a semi-regular basis to check in with your staff
• Measure and report on recycling efforts to help assess how your recycling efforts are going
• If you notice an improvement in recycling efforts, acknowledge and congratulate your co-workers
• Watch out for common slip-ups which you can politely correct
• Set up a ‘green team’ to help spread the word and encourage them to act as ambassadors

These tips are a great starting point for engaging and improving recycling compliance. At Paper Round, we offer in-depth staff engagement products, which can revolutionise your recycling efforts. This includes rigorous Waste Composition Analysis, engaging Lunch and Learns and thought-provoking workshops. To find out more, get in touch with our Sustainability team on sustainabilityteam@paper-round.co.uk.

In tomorrow’s blog we will be discussing ‘wish-cycling' and contamination – not one to miss!

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