About the Royal City Recycling Champions Program

This program takes place online using Zoom.

The Royal City Recycling Champions program is a free adult education program on waste prevention and reduction for residents of New Westminster.
The program's goals are to connect like-minded community members, provide the best information available about the waste system, and train participants to help themselves and others reduce waste. The program is based on the content of the popular Master Recycler Vancouver program, and facilitated by the same team.

Becoming a Champion doesn't mean knowing everything. It means knowing how to find the best information, and working within your community to build skills and resources to help everyone succeed.

The program consists of four evening classes followed by mentored hours of public outreach. We want to help you reduce waste and share the knowledge you gain during the program. Facilitators provide two hours of mentorship per participant towards your 20 hours of community action.

Program at a Glance

Class 1: New Westminster's Waste System

  • The concept of waste and the Waste Prevention Hierarchy
  • The City of New Westminster’s waste management system
  • City resources and environmental and climate strategy
  • How to conduct home waste audits, to be completed for class three

Class 2: It’s All About Materials, Not Waste

  • All about materials, and the way they are handled locally, regionally, provincially and internationally, including: Plastic, Paper, Organics, Glass, Electronics, Metals, Hazardous and other EPR products.
  • Trade-offs and pros/cons of selecting different packaging products

  • The carbon cycle and connection between reducing waste and carbon emissions

Class 3: Back to the Future: The Local Circular Economy

  • Solutions to waste and the circular economy
  • Local organizations, city initiatives and outreach opportunities
  • Spotlight on multi-family housing challenges and options
  • Home waste audit review and discussion and goal-setting

Class 4: Your Turn Now: Community Engagement

  • Principles of Community Based Social Marketing
  • Behaviour change tactics and how they apply to multi-family housing and neighbourhood-wide initiatives
  • Planning community outreach activities
  • Final discussion and wrap up

Despite its name, the Royal City Recycling Champions Program is about the deeper issue of how to reduce and prevent (avoid) waste. The program addresses garbage, recycling and organics disposal, and trains participants in community outreach, leadership, and behaviour change.


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This program is provided by the City of New Westminster, empowered by SPEC, designed and facilitated by Master Recycler Vancouver.