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Mattel wants you to send back your toys when you're done with them

By Alexis BenvenisteCNN Business   Updated 12:31 AM ET, Mon May 10, 2021 image.png New York (CNN Business)Good news for 90s kids who have laundry baskets filled with Barbies in their parents' basements: Mattel wants to recycle your old toys.
The 76-year-old toy company is launching a pilot program called "Mattel PlayBack" that is designed to recover and reuse materials in old toys for future Mattel products.
The new effort is the company's latest step toward a sustainability-focused future. Mattel previously committed to using 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials across all of its products and packaging by 2030.
Consumers can participate in the program by visiting Mattel's website, printing a free shipping label and packing and mailing their toys back to the company. The toys will then be sorted and separated by material type and processed and recycled, according to the company. Materials that cannot be repurposed as recycled content in new toys will either be downcycled into other plastic products or converted from waste to energy.
"We get to keep these valuable materials out of a landfill and have the opportunity to learn from the circular model," Pamela Gill-Alabaster, Mattel's global head of sustainability, told CNN Business.
The toy company is kicking off this program with three brands — Barbie, Matchbox and MEGA toys — and plans to add other brands in the future.
The program will initially only be available in the United States and Canada, but the company is launching similar PlayBack programs in France, Germany and the United Kingdom with a third-party partner, a spokesperson for Mattel told CNN Business.
Mattel experimented with a similar program in Canada with it's MEGA toys in 2020 in partnership with TerraCycle, a recycling company based in New Jersey.
The pandemic created an unanticipated surge in demand for toys as parents hunkered down with children at home, and Mattel isn't alone in its efforts. Many large toy companies are trying to become more eco-friendly after decades of relying on environmentally destructive plastic in their products and packaging.
Finding alternatives to plastic is crucial to tackling climate change, and adopting "eco-friendly" marketing is also important for companies as shoppers are increasingly conscious about how their choices affect the planet.
Both the production and discarding of plastic has had devastating effects on the planet, from greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change to clogging waterways and plastic accumulating in oceans.

World Changing Ideas Awards 2021: Pandemic Response Finalists and Honorable Mentions

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Programs, products, policies, or anything else designed to mitigate either the health effects of COVID-19 or the economic effects of lockdowns. Read more about the winner, Regeneron’s COVID-19-fighting antibody cocktail.

FINALISTS

3D Printed Nasopharyngeal (NP) Swabs, Formlabs Baidu Ask Doctor, Baidu CIC Health, CIC Health Cold Chain as a Service, Controlant COVID Recovery Insights Platform, UrbanFootprint COVID-19 Action Fund for Africa, COVID-19 Action Fund for Africa COVID-19 Platform, Color COVID-19 Response, Labcorp COVID-19 Saliva Test Validation, Circuit Clinical COVID-19 Test Home Collection Kit, Everlywell COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator, Mastercard COVID-19 Wastewater Monitoring, 120Water COVID-SeroKlir COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) Antibody Test Kit, Kantaro Curative, Curative CZ Biohub COVID-19 Response Effort, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Essential Mask Brace, Fix the Mask Get Shift Done, Shiftsmart HealthWeather, Kinsa Healthy Buildings Program, Carrier High-Volume COVID-19 Antibody Test, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics LetsGetChecked Coronavirus (COVID-19) Test Home Collection Kit, LetsGetChecked Pandemic Response Lab, Opentrons Pop-up COVID-19 Testing Clinics, Carbon Health PPE donations, Direct Relief PPE recycling, TerraCycle ProjectProtect, Intermountain Healthcare SATO Tap, LIXIL Group Corporation Share a Meal Campaign, Lineage Logisitics T-Detect, Adaptive and Microsoft The New Orleans Resilience Corps, Resilience Force Ventilator production mobilization, Medtronic World Central Kitchen, World Central Kitchen and Frontline Foods

HONORABLE MENTIONS

100% Mulberry Silk Face Mask, DiscoverNight Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Test, Abbott AbCellera Biologics, AbCellera Biologics AliveCor, AliveCor American Connection Project, Land O’Lakes Anchorage Small Biz Alerts, Municipality of Anchorage i-team Athena Rapid Response Innovation Lab, Building Momentum Big Facts, Small Acts, Big Facts, Small Acts BioSecurity Platform, ReturnSafe Board, Klaxoon Canada Goose Response Program, Canada Goose Canopy, Canopy Carbon COVID-19 Response, Carbon CarePort Against COVID-19, Careport Center for Health Worker Innovation & COVID-19 Response, Johnson & Johnson Clyraguard, Clyra Medical Technologies CNN 411, CNN Color Speaks, Gensler CommCare for Vaccine Delivery, Dimagi Coronavirus Innovation Map, Moscow Agency of Innovations Coronavirus Response, Health In Harmony COVID-19 Response, Pernod Ricard North America COVID Calculator, One Concern COVID Community Vulnerability Map, Jvion COVID Protocols Website, Upstatement COVID Remote Monitoring System, Diagnostic Robotics COVID-19 Data Hub, Tableau Software COVID-19 High Performance Computing Consortium, IBM COVID-19 Mobility Insights, Cuebiq COVID-19 Pandemic Response, ID4A Technologies COVID-19 Planning Solutions, Qventus COVID-19 Relief Fund, MusiCares & Recording Academy COVID-19 Relief Fund, Thrive Market COVID-19 Response, Fetch COVID-19 Response, Zocdoc COVID-19 Response, American Psychological Association COVID-19 Response, PerkinElmer COVID-19 Response, Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center COVID-19 Response, HP COVID-19 rumor-tracking system, SHOFCO CRISPR SARS-CoV-2 test, Sherlock Biosciences CT in a Box, GE Healthcare D-tec Mobile Healthcare Facilities, Grimshaw and SG Blocks Data-Against-COVID19 Taskforce, Dalberg Data Insights DetectX-Rv, PathogenDx DiDi HealthGuard, DiDi DineOut NYC, Rockwell Group Dining at a Distance, Huge Doximity Dialer Video, Doximity Employer COVID-19 Testing Platform, Brio Systems eSight Workplace, eSight Fitwel Viral Response Module, Center for Active Design Flutterwave Stores, Flutterwave Folding@home, Folding@home Free Face Mask Clips, Delta Faucet Free Pair for Healthcare, Crocs Frontline Impact Project, The KIND Foundation Global COVID-19 tracker, CHOICE Humanitarian and Domo Global Goal: Unite for Our Future, Global Citizen Grand Forks, North Dakota drone delivery, Flytrex Hand sanitizer production, Black Button Distilling Hand-washing stations, Orbia and UNICEF Health Risk Management Platform, Oura Intuit Aid Assist, Intuit #IStayHomeFor Campaign, SixDegrees.Org Melaju Bersama Gojek (Go Forward with Gojek), Gojek Microsoft Bing COVID-19 Tracker, Microsoft Mobile Flu Shot Clinic, Klick Health Mobile Testing Lab and Pop-Up Care Unit, Perkins&Will MotionWorks Proximity, Zebra Technologies Moving & Storage Isolation Units for COVID-19 Patients, CallisonRTKL and PODS Neighborhood Emergency Economic Development Grant, EDGE for Memphis & Shelby County  Network Congestion Map, FourKites New Belgium Brewing Bar and Restaurant Relief Fund, New Belgium Brewing Next generation sequencing-based COVID-19 diagnostic test, Guardant Health Notarization Functionality, NotaryCam One Medical’s COVID-19 Response, One Medical Orange Money, Orange Pandemic EBT Help Bot, Municipality of Anchorage i-team Pandemic Response Technology Initiative, Intel Flex Paycheck Protection Program Solutions, Paychex PepsiCo Restaurant Relief, PepsiCo PPE, VIDA PPE, Outdoor Research PPE Solutions, Crea Press Freedom and Government Transparency During COVID-19, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press Project V, Velentium Quartet Health, Quartet Recovery Insights Initiative, Mastercard Relief Roadmap, Credit Karma Remote Evaluations for Special Education Students, A.I.M. Renter Stimulus, Kairos HQ Safe Hands Kenya, Dalberg Catalyst Salesforce Care and Work.com, Salesforce Samsung Galaxy Watch Active2, Samsung Shopify COVID Response, Shopify SiO2s vials, Sio2 Materials Science Sportsmask, Under Armour Steady Together, Steady Supply Chain Resiliency for Health & Safety, Accenture and Microsoft SwiftStudent, Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation and FormSwift Tech for America, Coding Dojo Temporary hospital support, Siemens The +1 Global Fund, The Roddenberry Foundation #TheBlackResponse, Color Of Change The Ellume COVID-19 Home Test, Ellume The Fortum Handle, Fortum and TBWA\Helsinki The Hero Initiative, Laws of Motion The Internet was #BuiltForThis, Cloudflare The Learning Passport, UNICEF USA and Microsoft The Voice of Charities Facing COVID-19 Worldwide, CAF America TikTok COVID-19 Relief Efforts, TikTok #TogetherAtADistance, Ambev United We Mask, United We Mask Up & Running, eBay USAFacts Coronavirus Tracking Map and Recovery Hub, USAFacts UV Equipment to Sterilize PPE, Carnivore Meat Company Vent 2.0, Bloom Energy Ventilator Training Alliance, Allego VOX Ventilator, Fuseproject We All Eat Texas, Texas Black Expo Wellbeing Automated Call Service, PA Consulting Wide Open School, Common Sense Media Window Swap, Window Swap

TerraCycle Named One of TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies

For the first time ever, TIME Magazine has developed a mega-list of the 100 most influential companies in the world. The list, which “highlights 100 businesses making an extraordinary impact around the world,” includes most of the globes major business industries in the game such as Apple, Johnson & Johnson, Zoom, Facebook, Amazon,  Proctor and Gamble and Tesla. Along side these massive meccas is one of Trenton’s very own business – TerraCycle.   TerraCycle, located in the heart of the city of Trenton, offers a range of national, easy-to-use recycling platforms that allow everyone to make use of all scrap material, even the most difficult-to-recycle objects. These scraps are transformed into raw material that is then repurposed into a variety of useful products.   One main component to TerraCycle is their sustainable shopping experience, Loop, which helps gear the world away from single-use packaging. In TIME’s listing, it suggests that TerraCycle’s sustainable model, “could be the key to unlocking recycling’s full potential at scale.”    Time solicited nominations across every sector including health care, entertainment, transportation, technology and more from its global network of editors, correspondents and industry experts.  Each company was then evaluated on key factors including relevance, impact, innovation, leadership, ambition and success.   The mega-list itself is divided into five main sections: Pioneers; Leaders; Innovators; Titans and Distributors. TerraCycle fell under the “Pioneers” section designating them a trend-setter and force to be reckoned with in the recycling industry.   

A Guide to Recycling Clothes and Beauty Products

If you've been trying to effectively reduce waste but don't know where to start, look no further.   image.pngYou know all about the three R's — reduce, reuse, recycle — but when it comes to applying them to a daily routine, it can feel complicated. There are a ton of different combinations of materials out there and it's intimidating if you don't know what's actually considered recyclable. Most likely when you think of recyclable materials, you might just think of paper goods, plastic water bottles, and aluminum cans. But what you completely forget about are textiles, or old clothes and beauty products. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, textiles made up more than 5% (17 million tons) of all U.S. landfills in 2018. That same year, 14.7% (2.5 million tons) of textiles were recycled. Consider this your personal guide on how to effectively reduce waste, reuse containers and recycle that old stained sweater you can't wear anymore. Read on to find out how you can do your part by sustainably getting rid of old clothes and beauty products.

Check Recycling Regulations

The first thing you're going to want to do is check your local recycling laws to make sure you're following the rules. Luckily, we live in a day and age where we have information at our fingertips. There are a ton of resources out there that help check which recyclables are accepted, like EARTH911Recycle CoachCall2Recycle and How2Recycle. Recycled items are then transported to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), where they're separated and prepared for marketing to manufacturers for repurposing. Just a heads up —MRFs tend to have stricter rules and don't accept a lot of beauty products. A good rule of thumb to follow when it comes to beauty products is that if the packaging is made with fewer materials, it's more likely to be recycled. Some brands like R+Co and R+Co BLEU are committed to using post-consumer resource (PCR) packaging, which is made of 100% recycled material. Packaging plays a big part in recycling, so researching and purchasing from brands with such initiatives makes sustainable living much easier. Apps like RecycleNation and Recycle Coach are a huge help when it comes to figuring out if specific items and materials are recyclable.

Textile Recycling Programs

Textile recycling programs recover old clothing and textiles for reuse or material recovery. This helps keep these items — even those with stains and tears — out of landfills. TerraCycle, one of the most well-known recycling programs, has worked with multiple brands like Nordstrom for BEAUTYCYCLE and Package Free to help reduce waste. BEAUTYCYCLE is a free program that recycles emptied beauty and skincare product packaging at Nordstrom. The best part is that they'll accept any brand regardless of whether it's sold by Nordstrom. Package Free sells zero waste boxes that you can fill with appropriate waste streams and ship back to TerraCycle for recycling. You don't even have to worry about shipping — each box includes a prepaid return label. There are several categories of zero waste boxes to help organize items depending on what you're recycling.   image.png

Check If Brands Do In-House Recycling

There are a ton of brands out there that have started doing their part in reducing waste by recycling in-house. If you send old clothes and empty beauty packaging back to these brands, they'll most likely work with programs like TerraCycle to properly dispose and repurpose the materials for new packaging and products. There are also brands like W3LL PEOPLE that not only create products with plant-powered formulas but make it a point to give back to the planet. To celebrate Earth Day, W3LL PEOPLE has partnered with the National Forest Foundation to plant 10,000 trees in National Parks in the U.S in April. Read on to see which brands have in-house recycling programs to do their part in normalizing sustainability.

Beauty & Skincare

Clothing & Shoes

Bras

Glasses

Donate or Resell Items

If you're not able to recycle your clothes or beauty packaging, there's always the option of donating or reselling lightly used items. You can pretty much donate any clean clothing unless it's wet because it can promote bacteria growth. For starters, you can pass clothes down to your siblings or friends or make donations to local thrift shops and charity organizations. If you're looking to make some extra cash, you can also take any items to consignment stores like Plato's Closet or sell items online. When it comes to selling and donating beauty products, there are different policies depending on the store or organization. Some places don't accept items past their shelf life or items that have been opened and slightly used. You're definitely going to want to check policies before donating anything, especially since they might have changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Do your part in reducing textile waste by following the tips highlighted throughout this guide. For more information on the best sustainable options out there, check out Seventeen's Sustainable Style Awards.

How to Recycle Your Beauty Products the Right Way

Did you know that the global cosmetics industry produces 120 billion units of packaging each year? These units contribute to the loss of 18 million acres of forest every single year, according to research conducted by Zero Waste Week and published on the Stylist. Yep, I was devastated to learn this, too. As a beauty editor who receives and tests tons of products on a weekly basis, I’m often left feeling disheartened by how much plastic and waste is used in the packaging. That’s why whenever I hit pan on my favorite bronzer or finish my clarifying shampoo, I make it a point to recycle the leftovers in the appropriate bins — or at least what I thought were the appropriate bins. As it turns out, recycling cosmetic packaging correctly involves more research and information than I thought.

To find out how to recycle my beauty products the right way,  I reached out to Alex Payne, a publicist for TerraCycle —- a recycling program that offers a sustainable solution for those hard-to-recycle items. Read on for his top tips.

Get Informed

“In general, plastic pollution is a main driver of the negative environmental consequences that result from not recycling otherwise recyclable products,” says Payne. While it may be easier to throw away your empty lipstick bullet in any old trash bag, not disposing of it the right way can have a lasting, negative impact on the planet.

Learn About Your City’s Recycling Regulations

Did you know that recycling restrictions vary by city? Generally, items made from glass, aluminum and basic #1 and #2 plastic (things like single-use water bottles and milk jugs) are accepted by most local programs. Unfortunately, Payne explains that many modern forms of beauty packaging contain complex materials that cannot be separated or processed by most municipal recycling centers. “A simple way to check your beauty product’s recyclability is to look up your town’s accepted waste via the database offered by Call2Recycle,” he says.

Dispose of the Excess Product — but NOT Down the Sink

This is the *most* important tip when it comes to recycling your beauty products. “Even if a product is technically recyclable through your curbside program, any leftover product can make the container unrecyclable due to contamination,” says Payne. What’s worse is that if any other recyclables encounter the leftover residue, they also can become contaminated and therefore non-recyclable. So before recycling any beauty products, be sure to throw away any residual product in the garbage. Emptying products in the sink can be problematic if they contain ingredients like microbeads that can contribute to the ocean’s plastic pollution crisis if they come in contact with waterways, explains Payne.

Find Programs That Recycle the “Unrecyclable” Products

If you find that your products can’t be recycled through your municipal program, try finding a cosmetic recycling program that will do the work for you. For example, TerraCycle and Garnier have partnered to create a free recycling program for all brands of skin care, hair care and cosmetic packaging. Joining the program allows you to download a free shipping label so you can send in your products. Once received, they will be melted down, pelletized and shaped into hard plastic to be used in things like shipping pallets and park benches. If your product cannot be recycled through your municipal program and is not accepted by any of TerraCycle’s free programs, Payne says you can also purchase one of TerraCycle’s zero-waste boxes — specifically the Beauty Products and Packaging Box — which allows you to recycle practically every kind of waste. Everything that is collected from these boxes get sorted and processed into raw materials that can be reused instead of getting sent to a landfill or incinerated.

Be Mindful When Buying Beauty Products

Another way to help the planet is to buy products that already come in sustainable packaging. Thankfully, there are more and more brands offering eco-friendly options each year. One of our favorites is Seed Phytonutrients, which uses shower-friendly paper bottles that result in 60% less plastic than a traditional bottle. Oh, and the pumps from those bottles can be recycled for free via TerraCycle. Look for refillable cosmetic containers, too, like the Lancôme Absolue Revitalizing & Brightening Soft Cream. When it’s time to repurchase this luxe cream, you can pick up a refillable pod and keep the chic golden jar your original came in — so it’s friendly for your vanity, your skin and the earth.

This Program Recycles The Hard-To-Recycle

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By Kate Lawless | Photo credit: Image courtesy TerraCycle Spring cleaning is on our minds, and it’s important to think about what we’re throwing away — but also how we can make more sustainable choices going forward. Luckily, there are alternatives to just tossing items that are better for the environment, and TerraCycle is one such program revolutionizing recycling. TerraCycle is a social enterprise company that offers free recycling programs “funded by brands, manufacturers and retailers around the world to help you collect and recycle your hard-to-recycle waste.” The company accepts items that typically, a city’s recycling program may not take. Here in the Madison area, TerraCycle partners with well-known brands such as Colgate, Aussie, Gillette and Josie Maran, to recycle items like razors and cosmetics and turn them into new products. Guided by the company’s belief that you can recycle almost anything, TerraCycle has won many awards for its personalized and partnership-focused recycling programs, including being selected as a 2021 “Top Impact Company” alongside trailblazing companies like Patagonia and Tesla. There are a few ways consumers can try out TerraCycle:
  • Peruse TerraCycle’s website to see which brands have partnerships with the company. From BIC pens to Brita water filters, you can find a wide array of products that TerraCycle is able to accept. Choose a personalized box from that brand that will ship right to your house. Then, fill up the box with used products from that brand, and ship it back to be recycled — free of cost to you. Interestingly, you can even recycle certain personal protective equipment and disposable face masks.
  • TerraCycle already has public drop-off locations in schools and libraries in Monona and certain healthcare providers in Madison. Checking their website can help you find the closest public drop-off location to you.
  • You can also order their Zero Waste Boxes for your home, school or workplace to start your community’s own recycling initiative, according to what brands and products you most regularly use.
Besides reducing waste, TerraCycle’s programs also allow consumers to earn points for each pound they recycle. Each pound is worth 100 points and each point is worth 1 cent. You can then donate that money to a school or nonprofit organization of your choice. terracycle.com/en-US/