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2024 NYSAR3 Conference Abstract

Submitted by Reuse Committee, Moderator: Sue Momberger

Show Me (All of Us) the Money (Value)!  Build it (Convenient and Accessible) and They Will Come (Participate)!!

Building a Circular Economy. Focusing on the Middle ‘R.’ How Do We Bring Reuse Mainstream? 

A circular economy is an economic system for resource production and consumption that aims to reduce waste and climate change, and other global challenges; keep products in use, and regenerate natural systems. It is based on three principles: reduce, reuse, and recycle and involves keeping products and materials in use for as long as possible through sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and recycling. 

Bringing a circular model mainstream will require dedicated collaboration of all Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) stakeholders, including generators, consumers, the waste and high-tech industries, manufacturers and brand owners, non-profit organizations and industry associations, local, state and Federal government entities, private and public sector financing, research institutions, and impact entrepreneurs. Collaboration will maximize and accelerate the impact that each has begun to achieve independently over the past few decades, particularly in the invisible economy of managing reusable materials, to drive the best environmental, social, and economic solutions. 

This session will focus on the obstacles of bringing Reuse mainstream and the collaborative components / stakeholder roles needed to create a viable and sustainable reuse materials management system.  It will demonstrate social, economic, and environmental value already achieved by various SMM stakeholders’ reuse efforts, and the needs of each to increase participation in reuse practices including infrastructure, collection, sorting, distribution, markets, IT, financing, policy, education, innovative solutions, and change in mindset and behavior towards reusable materials as a resource rather than a waste.

It will also include identifying the collaborative roles and system components that each SMM stakeholder can contribute and the potential resulting increases in social, economic and environmental benefits including community engagement and a strengthened local economy realized by setting up more comprehensive systems to harvest valuable reusable materials that are typically discarded in landfills, creation of local jobs and business opportunities, reduced waste disposal costs, solid waste diversion, reusables revenue, GHG emissions reductions, and carbon credits revenue.

These topics will be addressed from the perspective of each major SMM stakeholder group regarding their successes or challenges thus far and what components/roles other stakeholders could contribute in a collaborative effort to bring reuse mainstream and increase participation, and include qualitative and quantitative discussions of the potential increases in social, economic, and environmental benefits, as follows. Attendee thoughts are desired and will be polled during presentations and/or through the Whova App.

1. Growing the Community ReUse Center Model. System Component Needs and Next Steps for Increasing Reuse: Diane Cohen 
2. How to Advance Reuse by Involving Waste Haulers and Processors? What Collaboration and Value Would Attract Them to Change: Dan Green, HELPSY Will Flower?
3. Show Me the Value. How to Get It. Compiling Potential GHG reduction and SMM Diversion, Financing, and Revenues Totals. IT and Education Needs: Maria Rozario
4. Successes of Research & Government Institutions Collaboration. What More Can They Do Working with Other Stakeholders – Reuse champion, experienced in govt/institution collaboration from SUSCS or CSMM? Kate? Jesse? Savannah?
5. EPR is key to a circular economy. How are Producers Promoting Reuse Now? What More Can They Do?  David Biderman? 

Federation Conference Abstract

Increasing Reuse Through Collaboration

We have to change the way we think if we want to create a circular economy.  Today, our culture embraces a linear economy of but it, use it and toss it.  This is not sustainable.  We as a global society are beginning to accept that in order to combat climate change and reduce its adverse effect on the environment and communities, we must address the way we design, build, use, and manage materials and resources. We must look at waste management holistically and change our mindset regarding discarded items by creating new materials management systems which identify and promote diversion of the valuable resources that can be reduced, reused, or recycled. 

By tackling our waste and material management challenges holistically through critical partnerships and innovative business & technology solutions, we will move from a linear economy to a sustainable circular economy that embraces, promotes, and implements each of the 3Rs, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. 

Bringing a circular model mainstream will require waste and high-tech industries, manufacturers, brand owners, non-profit organizations and industry associations, local, state and Federal government entities, private and public sector including finance, technology, government, research institutions, and impact entrepreneurs to work together. Collaboration will maximize and accelerate the impact that each has begun to achieve independently over the past few decades, particularly in the invisible economy of managing reusable materials, to drive the best environmental, social, and economic solutions. 

By establishing and promoting shared standards, best practices, innovative solutions, and measuring and reporting progress to waste managers and waste generators, we can change behaviors by advancing a new replicable reusable materials management system that is convenient, accessible, simple to use, safe, and beneficial to all stakeholders. Significant benefits to the environment and local communities will include creating new employment and business opportunities and ensuring environmental justice for disadvantaged communities. 

This session will focus on what we need to achieve a circular economy and describe the challenges and impacts in the current methods for recovering and marketing or exchanging reusable materials. It will also describe the necessary components for creating and promoting a better, collaborative system to reduce waste through increased reuse infrastructure, technology, and public education and outreach (PE/O). These include: 

• Establishing international impact standards and a platform for measuring our successes and identifying progressive steps for moving forward,
• Establishing a simple, effective public outreach and education platform to facilitate the mainstream adoption and implementation of source separation, collection, sorting and decontamination, and distribution of all types of reusable materials; and
• Facilitating the development of:

  • market outlets for materials,
  • material exchanges, 
  • necessary infrastructure including easy access and effective collection, distribution, and material exchanges;
  • workforce, and 
  • necessary funding and legislative mechanisms. 

Finally, we will also discuss the economic benefits of a circular economy and include some thought-provoking focus and invitation for thoughts on how such collaboration can be achieved. 

Brad London, Co-founder & CEO, Circular.eco; David Biderman (invited), Thought Leader in the Solid Waste and Recycling Industry, Don Diego Padilla II (invited), VP of Sales, Fleetmind Solutions; and Diane Cohen, Founder & CEO, Finger Lakes Reuse. Inc.

Request to meet with Cornell’s Earthshot nominating committee.

We as a global society are beginning to accept that in order to combat climate change and reduce its adverse effect on the environment and communities, we must address the way we design, build, use, and manage products and material resources. We must look at waste management holistically and change our mindset regarding discarded items by creating new materials management systems which identify and promote diversion of the valuable resources that can be reused or recycled. By measuring and reporting progress to waste managers and waste generators and promoting shared standards, best practices and innovative solutions, we can change behaviors by advancing these new materials management systems to be convenient, accessible, simple to use, and beneficial to all waste management stakeholders, especially local communities, and the environment.

By tackling our waste and material management problem holistically through critical partnerships and innovative business & technology solutions, we will move from a linear economy to a sustainable circular economy that embraces, promotes, and implements each of the 3Rs, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. Bringing a circular model mainstream will require waste and high tech industries, non-profit organizations and industry associations, local, state and Federal government entities, private and public sector financing, research institutions, and impact entrepreneurs to work together to drive the best environmental, social, and economic solutions. 

Increasing Reuse through Collaboration is a group of accomplished innovators, leaders and visionaries from each of those entities who have joined together to develop with laser-sharp focus and urgency, and implement with the use of state-of-the-art technology, a state-of-the-art system to manage reusable materials. They are working together to jointly maximize and accelerate the impact that each has begun to achieve independently in an invisible economy of managing these materials over the past few decades. This will include:

• taking solutions that have been implemented to scale, including FLRC,
• identifying and including all the other components and partners necessary,
• creating a replicable, localized Reuse Materials Management System for varying community types in NYS, and 
• demonstrating the replicability in some of our country’s less-advantaged territories such as PR and USVI in collaboration with work being conducted with them by USEPA and SUCSCS. 

This effort will also address the much larger challenges of managing such reusable materials as deconstructed building materials, disaster debris, and cleanouts of government or education institutions and temporary housing, including educational institutions, senior living and military housing in order to create a system that is replicable for all types and sources of reuse materials.

Our approach includes establishing a business entity imminently which will be the Earthshot Prize applicant. This entity will be responsible for establishing the framework for any type or source of reusable materials and will continue to facilitate the collaborative efforts of all of the necessary and growing number of partners and stakeholders to achieve these objectives.  The framework will be established, and objectives achieved by:

• leveraging existing strategic solutions and technology, 
• establishing international impact standards and a platform for measuring our successes and identifying progressive steps for moving forward,
• establishing a simple, effective public outreach and education platform to facilitate the mainstream adoption and implementation of source separation, collection, sorting and decontamination, and distribution of all types of reuse materials, and
• facilitating the development of markets and material exchanges, infrastructure including easy access and effective distribution, workforce, and necessary funding and legislative mechanisms. 

Development of such a system will create a game-changing impact around the world as in the US alone, 50 – 70% of all waste disposed in landfills at $100+/- /ton is reusable and can generate $2000/ton or more to benefit source communities socially, economically and environmentally. It will help to reach the Earthshot goals, facilitate achievement of big corporation sustainability goals, and positively affect people, communities and the natural world by contributing to global climate change, creating new employment and business opportunities, and ensuring environmental justice for disadvantaged communities.

We welcome the opportunity to meet with the Cornell Earthshot nominating team to share some of our first draft pitch deck and to discuss the criteria, timeline and requirements for submitting a proposal to Cornell for its nomination and a subsequent prize application.

Increasing Reuse by Building a Stronger Waste Management Industry Through Collaboration

Changing practices in sustainable materials management indicate that we as a global society are beginning to accept that it’s time to tackle our waste problem by moving from a ‘linear economy’ to a sustainable circular economy that embraces and implements each of the 3Rs concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. Bringing a circular model mainstream will require industry, non-profit organizations and associations,  government entities, private sector financing,  academia, and entrepreneurs to work together to drive the best environmental, social, and economic solutions. 

This session will focus on the materials management aspect of the circular economy, and describe the challenges and impacts in the current methods for recovering and marketing or exchanging reusable materials as well as necessary components for creating and promoting a better, collaborative system to reduce waste through increased reuse infrastructure, technology, and public education and outreach (PE/O). It will highlight some existing system component successes that can be scaled and propagated, and their positive social, economic, and environmental impacts, including  contributing to global climate change, creating new employment and business opportunities, and ensuring environmental justice for disadvantaged communities.  It will also describe other components that need to be developed and implemented in a collaborative effort, with some thought-provoking focus on how such collaboration can be achieved. 

Case study successes include the 15-year evolution of the Finger Lakes Reuse Center (now generating $2.4M /yr in reuse business) and its many contributions to the community and the Reuse sector including its Community ReUse Center template; Winters Brothers Center for Autism: a model workforce development center that can be included in the new reuse management system which has proudly trained and placed over 100 disabled workers on LI, and Circular.eco, a software platform being launched this fall to facilitate material collection and exchange.

These topics will also be discussed relative to deconstructed building materials at the Pre-Conference day.

This session will be eligible for P.E. credits. It can be moderated by Sue Momberger, P.E., NYSAR3 Board Member and Reuse Committee Chair, for 3-4 speakers? (TBD) who will present: maybe Diane Cohen, Finger Lakes Reuse Executive Director, David Biderman, former SWANA CEO and Executive Director, Will Flower, Vice President – Winters Bros. Waste Systems, and someone from circular.eco?

Waste Expo track: Landfilling and Recycling? Sustainability?

Waste Expo draft abstract submitted

Increasing Reuse by Building a Stronger Waste Management Industry Through Collaboration

Abstract:

Changing practices in SMM indicate that we as a global society are beginning to accept that it’s time to tackle our waste problem by moving from a ‘linear economy’ to a sustainable circular economy that embraces and implements each of the 3Rs concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. Bringing a circular model mainstream will require industry, non-profit organizations and industry associations,  government entities, private sector financing, academia, and entrepreneurs to work together to drive the best environmental, social, and economic solutions. This session focuses on developing a new Reuse Materials Management system. Case study successes include the 15-year evolution of the Finger Lakes Reuse Center / Reuse Center template; Winters Brothers Center for Autism: a model workforce development center for new reuse system, and circular.eco, a software platform to facilitate material collection/exchange.

Learning Objectives:

Describe: 1) challenges and impacts in current methods for recovering and marketing or exchanging reusable materials and 2) necessary components to create and promote a better, collaborative system to increase reuse 3) Highlight existing system component successes and positive social/economic/environmental impacts that can be scaled and propagated; describe others to be developed and implemented in a collaborative effort, with thought-provoking focus on how such collaboration can be achieved.

Notes to Conference Staff:

This should be a Keynote but can be a general session in the Recycling & Landfilling or SMM track. Thought Leader / Facilitator: David Biderman. Speakers: Diane Cohen, Founder/CEO, Finger Lakes Reuse Center, (now generating $2.4M /yr in reuse business) and its many contributions to the community and the Reuse movement including it’s Reuse Center template; Will Flower, VP Winters Brothers Waste Systems, and Brad London, Founder, circular.eco. These and others are part of a group planning to submit an abstract of the same name for sponsorship as an applicant for an Earthshot Prize, ideally this year. A more detailed abstract and contact info for speakers and facilitator is available.

Prize Objectives: how to spend $1.25M on RMM system components

1. Scaleup of Proven Model Reuse store: FLRC (collaboration with nonprofits)

   1. (now generating $2.4M /yr in reuse business) and its many contributions to the community and the Reuse movement including it’s Reuse Center template; 
   2. Leverage experience & lessons learnt to define standard industry key measures of success that is Specific, Measureable, Actionable, Realistic and Time-Bound (SMART).  These would not only be critical performance indicators to show progress and success rates of reuse stores but form a comparative report that can leverage a gamification strategy with yearly incentive awards and grants to winners by specific categories.

2. Education and Outreach / Technology including climate change/environmental and economic impacts

   1. Launch Circular.eco, a software platform being launched this fall to facilitate material collection and exchange.

      1. how it fits our vision… how to bring reuse mainstream
      2. add carbon credits calculator …. and post job / training opportunities?
      3. how much money needed for PE/O on the platform, pilot in DAC with Morgan 

     3.  (SUCSCS)  (Collaboration with research institutions)

4. Information Repository (Best Practices)

   1. CROWD (policies from around the country
   2. BuildReuse (Chris P.) 

5. Project with NYS CSMM (Collaboration with research institutions)
6. Build a prototype Contamination detector (Collaboration with entrepreneurs/ technology)

4. Reuse pilots EJ communities

   1. based on Morgan(SUCSCS) / Savannah P2I reuse grant study (Collaboration with research institutions)

5. Deconstruction materials collection and distribution project /model (FLRC and CROWD?)
6. Community Reuse Grants (Collaboration w/ industry associations) to conduct / model events

   1. pilot repair cafes / reuse items borrowing in library
   2. fun community reuse PE/O events (Collaboration w local governments, waste companies)

      1. swap
      2. paint collection
      3. education: gaming… circular.eco?

   3. Temp housing cleanout (college, nursing home, military)
   4. Large event cleanout (fairs, festivals). Zero Waste events. (Best Practices)
   5. NYSAR3 staff money to administer grants process: app, award, followup

7. Legislative advocacy

4. NYSAR3 staff money
5. Anna Kellis: pilot $
6. CROWD white paper

8. Funding

   1. NYSDEC, ESD, NYSERDA
   2. Private Sector Funding – Banks, 
   3. Volunteer Resources from large corporations – Non-Monetory, Intellectual and Effort Value

9. Develop Markets and Distribution

10. Infrastructure:

    1. Identify the best centralized portal (existing or new) to form the master site that links for ReUSE (National & International Information).  Resources could include reuse site info by location, standards, educational, training, job opportunities & program, grants, research, online market places, events & activities.
    2. Identify system of record to store critical data for Success Metrics and Key Performance Indicator Measurement and Reporting
    3. Communications Strategy to Subscribers -> Call to Action, Progress Report, Gaps We Need Support on, 
    4. Customer Relationship Management Tool for Client/Customers who would be interested in Products & Services
    5. Partners & Vendor Management Tool 

11. Social and Economic Impacts Job and workforce development opportunities

    1. Winters Brothers Center for Autism: a model workforce development center that can be included in the new reuse management system which has proudly trained and placed over 100 disabled workers on LI, and 
    2. Veterans
    3. Financially Disadvantaged Population – Give them a path to a career and good financial health

12. Prove a Model reuse component can be replicated, even on a remote island

13. Engage Waste Companies (collaboration with industry (waste companies))

NYSAR3 Conference Agenda abstract

Increasing Reuse by Building a Stronger Waste Management Industry Through Collaboration

Changing practices in SMM indicate that we as a global society are beginning to accept that it’s time to tackle our waste problem by moving from a ‘linear economy’ to a sustainable circular economy that embraces and implements each of the 3Rs concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. Bringing a circular model mainstream will require industry, non-profit organizations and associations,  government entities, academia, and entrepreneurs to work together to drive the best environmental, societal, and economic solutions. 

This session will describe the challenges and impacts in the current methods for recovering and marketing or exchanging reusable materials as well as necessary components for creating and promoting a better, collaborative system to reduce waste through increased reuse infrastructure. It will highlight some existing system component successes that can be scaled and propagated, and their positive social, economic, and environmental impacts. It will also describe other components that need to be developed and implemented in a collaborative effort, with some thought-provoking focus on how such collaboration can be achieved. 

These topics will also be discussed relative to deconstructed building materials at the Pre-Conference day.

This session will be eligible for P.E. credits. Moderator: Sue Momberger, P.E., NYSAR3 Board Member and Reuse Committee Chair, for 3-4 speakers? (TBD) 

Original Draft NYSAR3 Conference Agenda Abstract

Increasing Reuse by Building a Stronger Waste Management Industry Through Collaboration

Changing practices in sustainable materials management indicate that we as a global society are beginning to accept that it’s time to tackle our waste problem by moving from a ‘linear economy’ to a sustainable circular economy that embraces and implements each of the 3Rs concurrently, to unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts. Bringing a circular model mainstream will require industry, non-profit organizations and associations,  government entities, academia, and entrepreneurs to work together to drive the best environmental, societal, and economic solutions. 

This session will describe the challenges and impacts in the current methods for recovering and marketing or exchanging reusable materials as well as necessary components for creating and promoting a better, collaborative system to reduce waste through increase increased reuse infrastructure. It will highlight some existing system component successes and positive economic and environmental impacts that can be scaled and propagated, and describe others that need to be developed and implemented in a collaborative effort, with some thought-provoking focus on how such collaboration can be achieved.

These topics will also be discussed relative to deconstructed building materials at the Pre-Conference day.

This session will be eligible for P.E. credits. It can be moderated by Sue Momberger, P.E., NYSAR3 Board Member and Reuse Committee Chair, for 3 speakers? (TBD) who will present: 

(For reference: https://endplasticwaste.org/en/our-stories/the-plastic-waste-problem-explained?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw1YCkBhAOEiwA5aN4Acf3stCmn7KZk6dN3HD_F8la7a-4pK-XFHuD-TNSKaOLCL09VwwRERoC2McQAvD_BwE)

Original Draft Call for Sessions Abstract

Increasing Reuse by Building a Stronger Waste Management Industry Through Collaboration

The world still largely operates on the ‘linear economy’ model where raw materials are used to manufacture products, only to be disposed of at the end of their short lifetimes. Transitioning to a more sustainable model requires us to embrace and implement each of the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle in that specific order of priority. Changing practices indicate that we as a global society are beginning to accept that it is prime time to tackle the waste problem. 

By moving to a sustainable circular economy, we can unlock the value of our waste, protect the environment, and benefit from many social and economic impacts including contributing to global climate change, creating new employment and business opportunities, and ensuring environmental justice for disadvantaged communities. A new approach to materials management can help support local resilience, and will demonstrate a model that can be replicated around the world. This effort also requires addressing the lack of proper waste management systems as currently, more than 30% of the world does not have access to proper collection and disposal of waste.

The solution requires changing our behaviors and systems to balance convenience and sustainability and asking industry, entrepreneurs, research institutions, and governments to work together to drive the best environmental solutions. Businesses are pledging to be more circular, redesigning packaging, or using recycled materials and helping find and create markets; researchers are developing and improving ways to make, sort, and recycle more sustainable materials; governments are re-evaluating their waste management systems which are fostering more accessibility to recycling. 

A better management system for reusable materials, including repair, upcycling, and supporting entrepreneurs in developing new and just marketplaces, also needs to be built and scaled as part of this effort. This includes reviewing collection systems, sorting capacity, and facilities, and defining and developing markets and exchanges for materials with value. According to Finger Lakes Zero Waste, more than 90% of our waste stream is reusable, repairable, compostable, or recyclable. As demonstrated by Finger Lakes Reuse, significant portions of this “waste” include materials in high demand, such as building materials, clothing, shoes, housewares, furniture, bicycles, books, records, packaged food, cleaning products, and more.  building materials (##); household waste(##), particularly that generated in multi-unit housing with turnover such as colleges, military, and senior living communities, and commercial waste…??? (##).

This requires providing basic infrastructure such as expanded facilities for convenient and necessary collection, decontamination and sorting for recovery and marketing of reusable materials, raising awareness and inspiring participation in sustainable practices.  developing new collection and sorting methods, and creating material exchanges and markets for reusable materials through local and regional networks. Collaboration with industry, research institutions, and governments and enterprise and workforce development are   essential keys to the success of creating a  new materials management paradigm. Special considerations also need to be included for disaster debris management.  

This session highlights possible solutions for a different way of managing materials, and the positive social and economic impacts being developed and proposed in an upcoming application for the Earthshot Prize by NYSAR3 on behalf and in partnership with the NYSAR3 Reuse Committee. NYSAR3 is honored to work in collaboration with research institutions, other industry associations, government entities, industry nonprofit organizations, and waste management companies to lead and pilot a solution in NYS and to develop a plan to scale out to the U.S. and its territories.

This session will be eligible for P.E. credits. It will be moderated by Sue Momberger, P.E., NYSAR3 Board Member and Reuse Committee Chair, for 3 speakers (TBD, I can speak instead if desired) who will present: the problem, the prototype solution(s), and the plan for scaling, including the negative impacts of the current system and the positive impacts of a better system. This can be a 2-hour session of presentations and Q&A. 

(For reference:

https://endplasticwaste.org/en/our-stories/the-plastic-waste-problem-explained?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw1YCkBhAOEiwA5aN4Acf3stCmn7KZk6dN3HD_F8la7a-4pK-XFHuD-TNSKaOLCL09VwwRERoC2McQAvD_BwE)