Research and Insights into Recycling Behavior Inside the Home

 April 25, 2024 (webinar)

Recycling is a complex reverse supply chain that begins in the household, but there is limited visibility into what actually happens in the home behind closed doors. While we know approximately half of all household recyclables never make it to a materials recycling facility, we don’t know exactly why. We certainly have ideas of what the challenges might be, but what could we be missing?

To confirm our recycling education and public engagement efforts are focused in the right places, we must observe actual home recycling behaviors firsthand and dig deep to understand the emotions and mindsets that drive these behaviors. And that's exactly what The Recycling Partnership’s Center for Sustainable Behavior & Impact did.


In this Maryland Recycling Network webinar, Elizabeth Schussler, Senior Director of Social Change, Behavior, and Impact and Lydia Keenan, Manager of Solutions Adoption share what they've learned about the everyday dynamics of household recycling.

Listen in as they take us through how recyclable materials flow through the house and how this flow affects the action to recycle.

Key Findings:

Home-grown recycling: The study found a number of in-home recycling systems, i.e., a set of routines including where the bins are located. Note: many households use more than one.

1. Centralized, Bin-Free: recyclables gather on floor or counter without a bin and taken to cart after meals or when leaving the house.
2. Centralized, contained: recycling bin mirrors trash bin in a central location (thought of as a set).
3. Distributed gathering: multiple bins placed around the home for easy access and visibility.
4. Out-of-Sight, Isolated: recycling container set apart from the living areas and trash bins.
   

Flow: The study found that strong recyclers keep materials moving through the home frequently and efficiently, creating a steady “flow” of recyclables to the cart. They consistently monitored the build-up of materials, made frequent trips to the recycling cart, piggybacked recycling onto other routines.

On the other end, a stagnant flow within a household tends to have carts placed out of the way which leads to more build-ups and logjams of recycling materials. Family members become overwhelmed with buildup thus giving up on recycling.

Dropoffs: The trickiest of the 3, the study found the main issues concerning drop-off programs included knowledge gaps on what items can be recyclable through drop-off programs, where the drop-offs are located, and what is the best system for collection in the home.

Learn more about how The Recycling Partnership can help you by contacting Elizabeth Schussler at eschussler@recyclingpartnership.org or Lydia Keenan at eschussler@recyclingpartnership.org

Additional Resources:

• Check out The Recycling Program Solutions Hub
• Read the 2024 State of Recycling Report