Applications for Reimagine Recycling now Open

Now on its third year, Reimagine Recycling – an annual program which aims to scale emerging circular economy initiatives through workshops and grant funding, takes on a different format by seeking waste solution program proposals to support. It aims to train organizations with existing projects that help address issues on waste segregation, recycling/upcycling, improving the welfare of the informal waste sector, and mainstreaming gender in waste management.

“The world is facing an ongoing waste problem and we, at Coca-Cola, recognize our responsibility to help solve it. However, we cannot do it alone. We move towards our vision of a litter-free world through collaborative partnerships with like-minded organizations such as Save Philippine Seas, as well as with our local communities. Together, we can make an even bigger impact and provide long-term solutions,” said Tony del Rosario, President of Coca-Cola Philippines and VP for Coca-Cola Franchise Operations in the East Region (Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Philippines).

Workshop topics at the event include stakeholder management, storytelling, visual communications, and business models. Speakers will include subject matter specialists and grantees of Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines. At the end of the program, three (3) initiatives will be selected to receive project funding of Php 500,000.

The workshop is part of Coca-Cola’s continuous efforts to achieve a world without waste through partnerships with organizations. In 2018, The Coca-Cola Company pledged to collect and recycle an equivalent of every bottle and can they sell by 2030; make its packaging recyclable globally by 2025, and use at least 50% recycled materials in its bottles by 2030. The company is also set to open a state-of-the-art recycling facility in Cavite by 2022 in making its vision a reality.

“The Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines and Save Philippine Seas are eager to train organizations and support their ideas on sustainability. Through Reimagine Recycling, we aim to fund waste management initiatives beyond our own. We’ve seen promising ideas come to life in the past two years and we’re looking forward to bring more to fruition this year,” said Cecile Alcantara, Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines President.

In 2019, Save Philippines Seas together with Coca-Cola introduced Reimagine Recycling: A Forum for the Future, which aims to enhance and strengthen the waste value chain in the Philippines by identifying existing efforts and gaps, building and nurturing a network among different sectors, and identifying areas of collaboration. Key to working towards a vision of a litter-free world is creating a network and space where diverse minds can meet. The first year of Reimagine Recycling bridged the opportunity for different organizations with various strengths to potentially collaborate beyond the program. Participants were given the opportunity to learn from other organizations on how to scale projects and further enhance their capacities.

“Plastic waste has become an even more urgent issue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many great ideas out there that need support to scale, and we’re hoping to find them and grow them through Reimagine Recycling Year 3’s new format,” said Anna Oposa, Executive Director of Save Philippine Seas.

To join, applicants should have an established ongoing project that addresses issues in waste segregation and plastic waste collection, recycling/upcycling, improving the welfare of informal waste pickers, or gender mainstreaming in waste management. The said project must be at least six (6) months old by September 2021. The initiative may be an online and/or offline campaign or a digital platform (web- or mobile-based) where actual waste collection is the metric; a social enterprise, or a community-based project.

Applications must be by an organization, association, or group, with two to three representatives per project. Applicants may represent private entities — including startups and social enterprises, civil society organizations, or academic institutions.

Initiatives supported through Reimagine Recycling include low-cost technology to recycle/upcycle plastics, platforms that improve transparency and traceability in waste collection, digital platforms for citizen science projects, equipment to collect river or ocean waste, incentive programs for informal waste pickers, and monitoring or reporting tool for waste collection/recycling rates, to name a few.

Reimagine Recycling is a project of Save Philippine Seas and Coca-Cola Philippines. Applications must be submitted on or before August 16, 2021. For any questions or concerns, please email Ms. Mo Maguyon, RR3 Project Manager, at [email protected].

For more information, please visit www.savephilippineseas.org/reimagine-recycling. Interested participants may view the FAQs at https://www.savephilippineseas.org/faq-reimagine-recycling or email [email protected]. You can read more about Coca-Cola’s vision of a World Without Waste here: https://www.coca-colacompany.com/reports/business-environmental-social-governance-report-2020.