Dive Brief:

• The Associated Recyclers of Wisconsin is hosting the "12 Days of America Recycles Day" to prepare state residents for America Recycles Day on Nov. 15, as reported by WSAW.
• The 12-day campaign aims to educate residents about best practices for recycling through social media and local events with community groups and municipal organizations. 

• Marathon County Solid Waste Department Operations Manager Dave Hagenbaucher told WSAW that the department accepts materials of all sorts, from paper and plastic to oil, batteries, anti-freeze, shingles and vinyl siding. Wisconsin state law requires residents recycle paper, glass, cans and plastic.

Dive Insight:

The 12 Days of America Recycles Day — likely inspired by the popular "12 Days of Christmas" — is an easy and effective way to get residents engaged and excited to participate in America Recycles Day (ARD). While ARD is a notable "holiday" for many in the industry, it shouldn't be the only day that residents become engaged with waste management practices. Therefore Wisconsin's efforts to increase outreach to communities across the state is important to ensure increased diversion rates.

While the state of Wisconsin is able to keep about 1.7 tons of materials out of landfills through recycling efforts, not all diversion efforts across the state are currently successful. In Madison, recycling officials are warning residents to do a better job of separating trash from biodegradables in order to have a successful organics program. Increased education in this area is also needed, as organics recycling is becoming a growing part of overall diversion efforts across the nation.

As others across the industry prepare for America Recycles Day, Keep America Beautiful (KAB) launched the #BeRecycled Sweepstakes to inspire participants to recycle all year round. According to KAB Senior Vice President of Recycling Brenda Pulley, the sweepstakes is a "call-to-action" for people nationwide to "pursue and live a recycle lifestyle," and once participants take a recycling pledge and enter into the sweepstakes, they will have the opportunity to win a $1,000 gift card. While the chance of winning such a prize is quite an incentive for many consumers to take the pledge, there is also hope that thousands of residents across the country will pick up life-long recycling habits from these outreach initiatives.