Issues: Environment, Energy, Natural Resource Management, Community Development
Stakeholders: Employees, Communities, Government
Region: North America
At Novelis, recycling is important from an economic, environmental and social point of view. Recycling aluminum cans saves energy, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and reduces the amount of material going into landfills. As the world's largest aluminum beverage can recycler, Novelis annually recycles more than 38 billion cans.
One way Novelis encourages recycling in North America is the Cans for Cash City Recycling Challenge. The City Recycling Challenge is a national contest that rewards cities for recycling aluminum beverage cans. Created by The United States Conference of Mayors and Novelis Corporation, in partnership with Keep America Beautiful, Inc. (KAB), the contest encourages and assists U.S. cities with their sustainable recycling efforts.
The Challenge offers a total of twelve $5,000 awards for municipalities and four $2,500 awards for KAB affiliates. The contest is divided into four divisions based on a city's population, and awards are given in three recycling categories: Most Cans Collected; Most Innovative Idea; and Most Innovative Idea partnering with a local KAB affiliate.
As a result, cities large and small, across the U.S. have created campaigns, unique to their city, to encourage recycling. Last year, Milwaukee, Winsconsin, a three-time Cans for Cash winner, implemented a “clean and green” themed campaign that focused on recycling in schools – and collected 1,147,084 pounds of aluminum. In Bowling Green, Kentucky, the city established a local recycling program, called ‘Drive To A Million.’ The program teaches students about environmental stewardship while rasing funds to support local schools, and earned Bowling Green the Division Three Award for Most Innovative Campaign.
More than 100 cities have participated in the Cans for Cash Challenge since its inception in 2004, resulting in the collection and recycling of more than 250 million aluminum cans. For details on the 2007 Cans for Cash City Recycling Challenge, see the program overview.
