City of Madison and Sustain Dane Recycle Better Course Begins on April 17, 2025

The Streets Division is partnering once again with Sustain Dane to offer the online Recycle Better classes.  The first opportunity starts on April 17, 2025.

By taking the Recycle Better class, you can help your friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers learn the right way to recycle more.

What is the Recycle Better Course?

The course not only teaches you how and why it’s important to recycle, it also gives you the knowledge and confidence to help your community recycle better. 

Upon completion of the course, you can become a Certified Recycling Steward so you can share this useful knowledge with those in your social circles.

Over 1,300 people have taken the Recycle Better course since 2021 and their outreach projects have reached over 100,000 people.

Class Details

Each online course has two 90-minute sessions.  The first session is April 17, 2025 12pm to 1:30pm with the second session on Thursday, April 24 from 12pm to 1:30pm.

More details can be found on the Sustain Dane registration webpage, or the Streets Division’s website.

Sustain Dane does charge a small tuition for the course ($15). If cost is a burden, please contact Lorenza Zebell at Sustain Dane to ask about having the tuition waived.

More Opportunities - Evening and Spanish Classes

If you cannot make the 12pm class time, there will be an evening offering in July.

Sustain Dane is partnering with the Latino Academy of Workforce Development to provide a Spanish version of the class as well.  The Spanish-language version will be held on May 24 and May 31. Please sign up at this link if you are interested.

Why does recycling right and the Recycling Better course matter?

A sort of the recyclables collected by the Streets Division revealed that 18.7% of what is placed into our green recycling carts is material that should not be in these recycling carts.

By placing things into the recycling cart that do not belong, you raise the costs of the Resource Recovery Special Charge by making the city pay for the disposal of more trash in the recycling, and you hurt the overall recycling system.

The wrong kind of material in recycling carts jams sorting equipment, and the wrong items can even be dangerous to the people who work at the facilities and it can lead to serious fires.

Why is recycling confusing?

Recycling rules are not the same everywhere you go. Every state is a little bit different on the rules and opportunities available.  This can make recycling confusing, especially for people who move to new states.

And since there are no set guidelines around the country, internet search engines and social media advice may not always give you the right local information you need for the carts in Madison, Wisconsin.  

The good news is that Wisconsin has strong and specific recycling mandates.  And here in Madison, we have many extra recycling opportunities - you just need to follow the guidelines.

Here’s how you can help.

When you take the Recycle Better course, you can help your neighbors, co-workers, fellow congregants, and members of your online communities reach this good local information and learn the right thing to do with the waste we all generate daily. 

Learn about Recycling without becoming a Certified Recycling Steward

City of Madison recycling information has always been, and will always be, free and readily available for you and your home.

You can learn what you can put in the recycling cart at your home by visiting the Streets Division’s recycling website.

There are many other free resources are available from magnets to maybe even the lid of the recycling cart at your home. Most recycling carts have a decal on the lid explaining what can go into the cart.

Additional Information

For more information about the City of Madison Streets Division’s recycling program, please visit www.cityofmadison.com/Recycling.

For more information about Sustain Dane and all of the classes and services they provide, visit www.sustaindane.org.