Did you know that there are countries where rewarding systems are implemented for people who recycle?
In ecological terms, the best waste is the one that is not generated. However, when any material can not be recycled or composted, it needs to be recycled.
That’s why, to promote the sustainability and the recycling, many countries created innovative systems that reward the citizens who separate correctly their waste.
Here there are some of them:
1. AUSTRALIA
In Sydney, it was implanted the initiative Envirobank. It consists on the deposit of recyclables in machines that, on the other hand, grant credit to be used on the public transportation. There are more than 500 machines distributed all over the state, projected to receive plastic packaging, cans, glasses, among others.
2. BRAZIL
In Brazil, there is a rewarding system denominated Ecoelce, that grants credits on the electricity bill to the residents responsible for recycling. This initiative considers the price of each material in the market on the discount time.
3. SPAIN
In some Spanish autonomous communities, there are machines that use the system called reverse sale. It consists on receiving recyclable materials and pay to the citizen.
A similar system is RECiCLA, an app in which the user takes pictures of the materials in front of the correspondent color container. Thus, the money is accumulated and can be, then, received on a bank account.
4. ARGENTINA
On the autonomous city of Buenos Aires, many projects were implemented to recognize the recyclers. One of them was the granting of discount coupons in the purchase of many products.
Besides, the program “Vamos aos Vizinhos”(Let’s go to the neighbors, translating to English), promoted by the Town Hall, consisted on a system of points. The prizes vary from a folding bicycle to a credit card for public transportation.
5. INDONESIA
In Surabaya, one of the biggest cities in Indonesia, it was launched a program that allows to pay the public transportation with bottles. This way, with a similar initiative from the other countries, Indonesia proposes to face the plastic problem on the next years.
6. COLOMBIA
Through the program, Recarga Verde (Green Recharging, translated to English), the Medellin subway launched a proposal that consists on the change of packaging for tickets. Through this project, that ended up being a success, it is expected to promote the sustainable mobility in the city: in a year, almost 2,5 million recyclables were changed for tickets.
7. GERMANY
The Pfand System, implanted on the country many years ago, consists on the supermarkets paying to the citizens to recycle. The system is very similar to the Spain’s one, implementing, also, the reverse sale.
March 2023 
