Recycling

Recycling is a crucial part of Sustainability. If we don't start creating a circular system of resources we are going to continue to be extracting more and more from the planet. Sadly, I think we're not as good at actually doing recycling as is made out to be. This can be summed up with one simple statement: Most kinds of plastic aren't recyclable just by putting them in the recycling bin.

The little 'recycling symbol' you see on all plastics actually isn't a recycling symbol but a "Resin Identification Code" (RIC). It's hard to believe it wasn't an intentional move to misrepresent what objects can be recycled and which can't.

RIC's are deceptive and until you're told that they don't mean that the item can be recycled, it'd be reasonable to assume that anything with the symbol can be recycled.

This great video by Joe Scott This Is NOT A Recycling Symbol explains in detail what the symbols mean, and just how bad the problem with creating and not recycling all this plastic is.