A few weeks ago, we visited Garfield Elementary, who participates in the Drink Pouch Brigade and the Elmer’s Glue Crew Brigade. They shared a few important lessons with us about how they promote their Brigades and get the students excited about recycling with TerraCycle.
One of their boxes is decorated as a robot, to make it extra appealing for the students – you can see a shot of it in their spotlight video! They also note that you should make sure you change the boxes often, so that they don’t get sticky and smelly. If you do make a neat collection station, be sure that the boxes can be taken out and changed without interfering with your decorations.
Garfield Elementary also has a very active PTA to help promote and organize the Brigade. They create things like the collection thermometer Garfield used to track collections last year, and small prizes for kids who bring in lots of trash to recycle! The parent support is instrumental in the Brigade’s success, and shows the importance of having a strong network of participation and enthusiasm.
Check out the video on Garfield to get a close up of their Brigade and see how to implement these lessons for your Brigade!