Tag: community

2023 Report – Social Enterprises in Ireland

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical Recycling, News, Social EnterpriseLeave a comment

The Report

The report “Social Enterprises in Ireland: A Baseline Data Collection Exercise” provides a comprehensive overview of the social enterprise sector in Ireland, including its size, economic impact, employment and volunteer participation, and governance structures.

The work was commissioned by the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) and carried out by a consortium. Full details of the consortium can be found in the report.

Please read on to view some of the key findings of the report, download a copy and view a video of social enterprise at work!

Size and Distribution of Social Enterprises

  • There are an estimated 4,335 social enterprises operating in Ireland, with a wide range of activities, including social care, environmental sustainability, community development, and education.
  • Social enterprises are geographically dispersed throughout Ireland, with significant clusters in Dublin, Cork, and Galway.
  • There are approximately 8.5 social enterprises per 10,000 inhabitants. 57% of social enterprises are in urban areas (8.3 per 10,000 inhabitants) while 43% are in rural areas (10.5 per 10,000 inhabitants).

Economic Impact

  • Social enterprises generate an estimated €2.34 billion in annual income, representing 0.63% of Ireland’s GDP.
  • Social enterprises employ 84,382 people, (including full-time, part-time employees and contractors). This represents 3.7% of the total Irish workforce.

Employment and Volunteer Participation

  • Social enterprises provide a significant source of employment for people with disabilities, migrants, and other marginalized groups.
  • An estimated 74,825 volunteers participate in the social enterprise sector, including 30,324 board members.
  • The age of the workforce is predominantly between 31 to 50. Women represent 69% of the workforce across the sector and 47% of the workforce is part-time.
  • Labour Market Programmes are an important feature of the sector with 60% of those with paid staff employing people this way.

Governance Structures

  • Social enterprises are governed by a variety of structures, including limited companies, charities, and community interest companies.
  • Social enterprises are increasingly adopting more formal governance structures, such as limited companies, in order to access new sources of funding and grow their businesses.

Challenges and Opportunities

  • Social enterprises face a number of challenges, including a lack of awareness and understanding of the sector, limited access to finance, and a shortage of skilled staff.
  • Social enterprises also represent a significant opportunity to address social and environmental challenges, promote social inclusion, and create sustainable employment opportunities.

The report concludes by outlining a number of recommendations for policymakers, funders, and support organizations to further develop and support the social enterprise sector in Ireland. These recommendations include:

  • Increasing awareness of the social enterprise sector
  • Providing more funding opportunities for social enterprises
  • Developing skills training and support for social enterprises
  • Strengthening the regulatory framework for social enterprises

Overall, the report provides a valuable resource for understanding the social enterprise sector in Ireland and its potential to contribute to a more socially and economically sustainable society.

To access the full report please click here.

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is a not-for-profit social enterprise providing collection and drop-off services for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Yearly Recycle IT offered to drop-off and collection services to thousands of homes and organizations across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of computers, televisions, toasters, cables, lawnmowers, monitors, microwaves and kettles.

Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster. Recycle IT receive funding thorough the Community Services Programme (CSP) operated by Pobal on behalf of the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD)

Watch the video below to learn more.

Video – Pobal and Recycle IT

Visit our website for further details.

Sharing the Question of Plastic Recycling

On By JMCEIn NewsLeave a comment

Overview

For over 50 years, global production and consumption of plastics have continued to rise. An estimated 299 million tons of plastics were produced in 2013, representing a 4% increase over 2012, and confirming and upward trend over the past years. (Source: Worldwatch Institute – January 2015)

Greenpeace says that “right now an estimated 12.7 million tonnes of plastic, everything from plastic bottles and bags to microbeads – end up in our oceans each year. That’s a truckload of rubbish a minute”

Ocean Waste - Recycle IT
Ocean Waste – Recycle IT

Most plastics used daily have a very low economic reuse value. Think about bread wrapping or banana bags. Another fact is plastics wrappers can contain numerous materials which are hard to separate. Examples include sweet wrappers, take-away food containers, coffee cups, coffee capsules and plastic/foil-lined cartons for soup and milk. Are investments in recycling solutions for these materials profitable? If not, how can this change to benefit the world?

What we do today?

Since the 1980s China has become the world’s largest importer of waste. In 2012, up to 56% of global exported plastic waste ended up in China. Imported plastic waste alone reached a peak of almost 9 million tonnes in 2012 (Source: Greenpeace)

China offered advanced notification to the World Trade Organization (WTO) of its plan to ban the importation of 24 types of waste, including plastics for recycling, waste textile materials and all unsorted mixed waste paper, the sort of paper that accumulates in household bins. It also says cardboard for recycling must be “cleaner” and free of contaminants such as gravel, dust and stones.

According to Industry Week, the biggest quantity of waste comes from the US followed by Europe, Hong Kong, Japan and Southeast Asia all of whom export large amounts of recyclables.

Map of China - Recycle IT
Map of China – Recycle IT

Change now!

On January 11th, 2018 China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) finalized a quality standard of 0.5% for certain imported recyclables. (Source; recycling today)

According to various government and trade organisations located across the globe, this action fails to properly consider the negative effects on global recycling efforts, but in our view, we must recognize this change as an opportunity for governments and communities to take responsibility and well as action locally for waste and its possible reuse.

A recent report in the Irish Times suggests Ireland, which has little capacity to recycle plastic has been trying to locate newer recycling markets, but could we do more at home to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Greenpeace urges industries and corporations that manufacture and market plastics and other disposable products to take responsibility for their products through their entire life-cycle, take responsibility for the environmental costs and invest in transformative solutions and alternatives to put an end to the current unmanageable levels of waste produced every year.

Plastic - Recycle IT
Plastic – Recycle IT

What we say

Recycle IT don’t directly offer a plastic recycling service but like lots of organisations and homes, we do accumulate plastic as part of our operations. We would love to see better plastic recycling routes and well as a reduction in overall packaging.

In our opinion, all stakeholders need to come together for the common good and find a range of solutions which meet the needs of different countries, markets and communities. Researching local needs, planning and infrastructure can help all stakeholders handle the plastic waste stream, hopefully with positive outcomes for the environment which we all share.

Recent Progress

The first-ever Europe-wide strategy on plastics was adopted on January 16th 2018. It is a part of the transition towards a more circular economy. It aims to protect the environment from plastic pollution whilst fostering growth and innovation, turning a plastics challenge into a positive for the Future of Europe.

Under the new plans, all plastic packaging on the EU market will be recyclable by 2030, the consumption of single-use plastics will be reduced and the intentional use of microplastics will be restricted.

For further information on recycling packaging includng plastic packaging in Ireland you can call Repak on 01 467 0190 or visit http://www.repak.ie.

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning not for profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop off service for all types of waste electrical, electronic and metal items. During the last 18 months Recycle IT offer drop off and collection services to 140,000 homes and organisations in Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of dishwashers, computers, cables, monitors, microwaves, TVs and metal items.

Our electrical community collection service is provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT are supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow.

Call us on 01 4578321 or email us at here

Visit our website www.recycleit.ie

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Recycle IT – Repak Award Winner 2019 – WEEE Champion

Recycle IT – Commended for CSR in 2017

On By JMCEIn Awards, Electronic and Electrical Recycling, NewsLeave a comment

Chambers Ireland Corporate Social Responsibility Awards 2017

The Chambers Ireland Corporate Social Responsibility Awards were established in 2004 to recognise the work being carried out by Irish and multinational companies to improve the lives of their employees and to enhance the civic environment in which they operate.

Chambers Ireland
Chambers Ireland

This unique competition now in it 14th year offers the business community in Ireland a chance to promote their efforts in CSR and gain recognition for best practice. The awards are presented in a variety of categories covering all areas of CSR.

The shortlist for the awards was announced in July and the overall awards winners were announced at a black tie dinner on September 7th, 2017. Recycle IT were delighted to be shortlisted in Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) category alongside 5 other organisations.

About the Awards

The 2017 Chambers Ireland, Corporate Social Responsibility Awards are partnered by Business in the Community Ireland, run in association with the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and sponsored by BAM Ireland.

The awards are judged by two separate panels comprising experts in the field of CSR. The first panel will decide the shortlist while the second panel will decide the category and overall winners. The judging process is completely independent and no representative from Chambers Ireland sits on the judging panel.

On the night Recycle IT were commended for our work in supporting local communities with a range of community electrical recycling initiatives. These initiatives help increases the quantity of electrical, electronic and battery operated equipment recycled each year.

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning not for profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop off service for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). During 2016 Recycle IT offered drop off and collection services to 100,000 homes and businesses across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of computers, cables, monitors, microwaves and TV’s.

Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT are supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow. To learn more, please call 01 4578321 or visit our website www.recycleit.ie 

Picture1 Logo Small Copy

Recognised as Age Friendly

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical RecyclingLeave a comment

RECYCLE IT – RECOGNISED AS ‘AGE FRIENDLY’

Recycle IT were delighted to be awarded an Age Friendly Business Charter in recognition of efforts to support older people in communities all over Dublin with electrical recycling collection and drop off services. Recycle IT are proud of the team’s work in achieving recognition and in also getting shortlisted for an Age Friendly Ireland Business Award.

Full Agefriendly-Ireland-Sticker_2015.png
Age Friendly Ireland

Recycle IT, a social enterprise is honored to be the first Dublin based Community Electrical Recycler to be recognised in this way.  The team views the programme as an opportunity to learn more and offer an ever improving service to older people and all customers.

Una Lavelle, Recycle General Manager, said:

“We want to ensure our services meet the needs of everyone including older people.  By signing the Age Friendly Business Charter, we are showing our commitment to providing services that are customer focused and accessible”.

Elaine McGauran Age Friendly Ireland said:

“We are delighted to announce Recycle IT has been designated as ‘age friendly’ by Age Friendly Ireland. The Age Friendly Business Programme is a nationwide initiative with the aim of facilitating local businesses tap into an existing and growing market segment that accounts for 50% of consumer spending, the older customer. The programme seeks to recognise the efforts and improvements made by local businesses to provide more age friendly services”.

Elaine McGauran Age Friendly Ireland and Una Lavelle, Recycle IT General Manager
Elaine McGauran Age Friendly Ireland and Una Lavelle, Recycle IT General Manager

In initially working to implement an Age Friendly Charter, Recycle IT addressed three main areas

  1. Customer Care – two staff members agreed to become champions to ensure older people experience a friendly and helpful service which address individual needs.
  2. Communication – information on our services is straightforward and our team can be contacted easily.
  3. Accessibility and signage – clear building and van signage and appropriate size text used on our website.

As a result of taking part in the programme, real service enhancements have been made and welcomed by members of the communities we service.  These include a dedicated collection team telephone number, clearly recognisable collection vehicles, staff identity badges and building signage. Further enhancements are planned.

The Age Friendly Achievement Award Ceremony happened on Tuesday 24th May 2016 in Fitzpatrick’s Killiney Castle Hotel, Dublin with the Recycle IT team receiving recognition on the night for their efforts in supporting older people in communities across Dublin with recycling services which address individual needs.

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Awards Night – Recycle IT team with Councilor Barry Saul

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is the only Community Electronic Recycling Social Enterprise in Dublin providing a neighbourhood collection and drop off service for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

Age Friendly Champions Mark Graham and George Willis
Recycle IT – Age Friendly Champions Mark Graham and George Willis

During 2015 Recycle IT offered collection services to 100,000 homes and businesses across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE including over 7000 monitors and TV’s.  Our services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland and with the cooperation of South Dublin County Council. We are authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and South Dublin County Council.

For further information, Tel: 01 4578321, email: info@recycleit.ie or visit our website www.recycleit.ie

Recycling Office and Home Computers Safely

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical Recycling, We Recycle ITLeave a comment

Recycle IT Safely – Computers, Phone, Tablet & Hard Disks!

According to preliminary sales figures from Gartner and IDC, PC sales fell throughout 2016. Its seems that infrequent users like you and me are more likely to reach for a smartphone to access applications that ten years ago would have needed a PC.  As a result of this trend, the market is declining and is set to decline again in 2017. The graph below shows PC sales figures from 2006 to 2015 and the ongoing reduction in sales over more recent years.

PC Shipping Data
PC Shipping Data

It’s also worth noting that PC enthusiasts, gamers and the business sector will continue to purchase PC in large volumes and globally, PC sales in 2016 stood at approx. 269.7 million units shipped which is still a large number.

Data and Information 

Even with PC sales slowing we are all still large consumers of information and we are buying lots of electronic equipment with hard disk drives (HDD) to store business and personal customer information including photos of everything from our kids to bank statements and passwords (so we can have a reminder).

Whether this information is stored on external HDD, mobile phones, tablets, memory cards, memory keys or other storage devices people should be aware how important it is to destroy and recycle safely once the items have served their purpose. Both business and personal data can be valuable to others so it’s important to destroy the data on your PC, phone, memory card or tablet.

Hard Disk Drives - Recycle IT
Hard Disk Drives – Recycle IT

You might be thinking, what will I do with all that information on the HDD before recycling a PC?  If so, please don’t try to burn or use industrial-strength magnetic forces on the devices as these methods are not full proof or safe!

What to Do next?

The key is to destroy your computer HDD is ensuring it can’t ever spin again. The physical destruction of the drive means increased confidence that stored data is obliterated and can never be used again. This is the method Recycle IT prescribe and practice.

In the interest of time and money, you don’t need to destroy the full PC or laptop just the hard drive which is a small box inside of computer itself and usually contains sensitive information including credit card information, photos or contact details. So if you are upgrading to a new computer device (desktop computer, phone, laptop, tablet, etc.) please arrange for the removal of the hard drive at the same time as recycling the computer!

How to Destroy the HDD?

If you are looking to dispose of an old computer with a hard drive, it’s really best to physically destroy the old hard drive just to be 100% certain that the old data is completely destroyed.  Recycle IT use electronic tools and powerful cutting tools to ensure the HDD is destroyed. This method is an ideal option for disposal of home or office hard drives.

Drilling or Cutting Hard Disk Drives - Recycle IT
Drilling or Cutting Hard Disk Drives – Recycle IT

Safety in Destruction

Our team take every precaution from wearing protective goggles, gloves, and a dust mask for mouth and nose when cutting into the metal drive. They can cut right through the drive, from one side to the other multiple times ensuring the platters and the controller board are shattered.  Once complete Recycle IT can provide destruction and disposal certification depending on your needs.

Finally

It’s worth making the point again – failure to arrange the destruction of your old hard drives at the time of recycling your computer or phone could result in the inappropriate sharing of sensitive information.

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning not for profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop off service for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

During 2016 Recycle IT offered drop off and collection services to 100,000 homes and businesses across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of computers, cables, monitors, printers and networking equipment. This helps sustain jobs and create training opportunites for people returning to works.

Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT are supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow.

Recycle IT - Pakman Award Winner 2016
Recycle IT – Pakman Award Winner 2016

If  you need more information you can call Recycle IT a call on 01 4578321 or email info@recycleit.ie

To learn more about recycling old batteries from you office safely please click UPS battery systems