Have a heart of glass, recycle and win cash

PORT Elizabeth schools have been invited to take part in the annual Glass Recycling Schools Competition which kicks off this month.

Pupils, teachers and parents are encouraged to participate and do their part in reducing their carbon footprint while standing a chance to win cash prizes for their schools.

The Glass Recycling Company (TGRC) chief executive Shabeer Jhetam said schools wishing to be part of the initiative need to request a glass bank for their school where the community can deposit their glass bottles and jars for recycling.

“The presence of a glass bank encourages parents, pupils, teachers and residents to engage in responsible recycling behaviour by separating their recyclables,” Jhetam said.

Along with the glass bank, TGRC will supply curriculum-compliant material to enable teachers to facilitate a holistic view of the glass recycling process for pupils.

“We are committed to a greener, cleaner country for the next generation, and our aim is to educate and encourage young consumers to ‘recover, reuse and recycle’, as well as to emphasise how glass recycling positively impacts the environment with minimal effort,” Jhetam continued.

It is the first time schools in Port Elizabeth and East London have been added as regions eligible to take part in the competition.

The schools which collect the highest tonnage of glass in each of the specified regions, will win monthly prizes of up to R1 500 and annual cash prizes of up to R30 000.

This is a fun and interactive competition for schools and pupils and we hope everyone will get involved this year,” Jhetam said.

The competition has been running from this month and closes in October this year.

Schools can enter throughout the year to be in line to win monthly cash prizes as well.

“It is so important for the youth of today to know the difference they will be making by recycling their glass and the benefits this will have for the environment,” Jhetam enthused.

Last year, contributing schools collected approximately 1.7 million glass bottles and jars.

For more information and to enter, visit www.tgrc.co.za or contact Thandi Sibanya on (011) 463-5644 or thandi@tgrc.co.za.