Make every day a recycling day

TGRC understands the importance of ensuring South Africans clean and dispose of their waste in the best possible manner, which the company explains is by recycling. "Recycling your waste ensures that your rubbish never litters our beautiful country nor ends up in landfill, rather that it is repeatedly used to manufacture new goods," says TGRC CEO, Shabeer Jhetam.

Finding sustainable ways to make the world a better place

Mandela Day is dynamic and ever-changing; it belongs to everyone and can take place anywhere, at any time. This approach is truly inclusive and means that each and every individual can become involved in his or her own way. It is however important to note that there is a strong emphasis on sustainable actions, and the need to make every day a Mandela Day.

TGRC also aims to find manners to continue to live the legacy left by our beloved Madiba by finding sustainable ways to make the world a better place. "TGRC is utilising this opportunity to express our support and commitment to this notable day, in recognition of our appreciation for our iconic South African leader," continues Jhetam.

According to the official Mandela Day website, the question we must ask ourselves is "what we are doing to make the world a better place?" Jhetam believes that the answer to this question is recycling - reducing the litter and waste from going to landfill. "By recycling glass, South Africans are ensuring we preserve our natural resources and contribute to energy saving. In addition, glass recycling plays a valuable role in formal and informal job creation."

Jhetam says we can all make a difference through small tangible actions, such as separating our waste for recycling. In addition several of the suggested 67 ways that you can make a difference include ways in which you could look after the environment:

• If there are no recycling centres in your area, petition your area councillor to provide one.
  
• Engage with people who litter and see if you can convince them of the value of clean surroundings.
  
• Organise to clean up your local park, river, beach, street, town square or sports grounds with a few friends. Our children deserve to grow up in a clean and healthy environment.

Give glass recycling a go

Make every day a better day by making the effort to recycle your glass. Recycling is easy; you don't have to start big to make an impact.

Glass can easily be recycled by taking glass bottles and jars to a 'glass bank' in your community. Should you not have a glass bank in your area and there is sufficient demand you can request one on TGRC website.

In addition you can find a glass bank by looking on our website or by sending an SMS with the word 'glass' and the name of your suburb to 32310, at a cost of R1.00 per SMS. For example, if you looking for a bank in Fourways simply SMS: Glass Fourways. Alternatively many petrol stations, shopping centres and schools now have recycling points where you can take your recyclables. If there isn't a place for you to drop off your glass, we encourage members of the public to lobby their service stations, malls and grocery stores to implement a glass recycling point.

As glass is made from natural substances, it is endlessly recyclable, making it a truly environmentally sustainable packaging. The statistics for the recycling in South Africa speak for themselves in highlighting the recyclability of glass:

• The glass recycling rate in South Africa is currently 40.6% - this means that every new glass bottle and jar manufactured in our country contains at least 40% recycled glass - a clear win for all. In fact glass has the highest recycled content of all packaging in our country.

• Over one billion glass bottles and jars were recycled in the past year alone; clearly many people recognise the value and importance of recycling. As a result during this period approximately 222,000 tons of carbon emissions were reduced by recycling glass.

• As glass is recycled it is immediately converted to new glass packaging and negates the need for the recycled content to be utilised in a different context. Since TGRC began its campaign to increase recycling seven years ago, there has been a phenomenal 230% increase in the quantity of glass recycled annually.