SWANA Hosts The “Thinking Out Of The Box” Conference

While watching the New York Giants take the title as Super Bowl Champions, the attendees celebrated at the Meet n’ Greet in the Topsider Lounge while eagerly anticipating the start of this year’s “Thinking Outside the Blue Box” Convention in Corpus Christi, Texas.  

Hosted by Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and conference partner, the Recycling Alliance of Texas, the conference highlighted management and funding solutions necessary to implement special waste programs and increase recycling diversion rates in an environmentally responsible manner.

One of the conference’s key initiatives was to introduce effective recycling solutions to mitigate the rising amounts of electronic waste that contains lead, mercury and other hazardous materials. Some States have prohibited the landfilling of  e-waste and in turn, local governments are playing significant roles to implement special waste recycling projects. The conference featured special guest speakers and case studies to highlight the solutions and challenges demonstrated by previous special waste programs. 

Keynote speaker, Nancy Nevil, Director of Sustainability and Environmental Services in the City of Plano, Texas-one of the leading cities in environmental protection advocacy- discussed proven solutions and challenges of implementing recycling programs through local government-based initiatives.

Challenging the traditional techniques of curbside recycling, the 2008 “Thinking Outside of the Blue Box” conference introduced innovative strategies to recycle special waste products within reasonable costs.

John Skinner, SWANA Executive Director and CEO, said, “The ‘Thinking Outside the Blue Box’ conference sets itself apart from any other SWANA conference. It calls for an alternative solution that challenges traditional recycling and disposal techniques. The attendees seemed to enjoy the innovative and creative elements needed to address one of the most challenging recycling problems.”