The Many Worlds of Recycling at NCRA Update

April 7, 2026 The Gigantic Team

It can be difficult to find ‘good news’ these days, particularly when it comes to environmental issues. But we can always count on Northern California Recycling Coalition (NCRA)’s annual spring Recycling Update to provide a glimpse of some important work happening in the Bay Area and beyond. Four members of the Gigantic team (Peter, Nancy, Lisa and Myer, pictured above) share their impressions of that very busy day:

Peter:

One particularly energizing session was delivered by Tony Hackett with Californians Against Waste. Tony delivered sobering statistics about the challenges with disposing of the various components of vapes. Before this, I had only thought about the personal health impacts of vaping; kudos to Tony for a great presentation that illuminated the damaging environmental health impacts of rising vape usage in California and around the world.

After lunch, the Banana Slug String Band kept the energy high in the room – an amazing performing group of outdoor educators that have been raising awareness with kids and adults alike for over 40 years!

For many, the Bay Area is synonymous with ‘tech’ – but what’s not often discussed is inequities in access to these tools. Ulises Zatarain with Tech Exchange presented on this divide and what the Bay Area Tech Exchange can divert e-waste and simultaneously empower communities with access to technology.

Nancy:

I was heartened by the opening presentation by Caitlin Steele, SFSU’s Director of Sustainability and Energy. The University has a longstanding “sustainability literacy” requirement, which recently morphed into a climate justice requirement…that’s some excellent preparation for any career! I was also inspired by the contributions of two young entrepreneurs: one who started a (sport) shoe recycling program at UC Santa Barbara and another who started a “radically sustainable” business, making wallets out of used skateboard parts. It all has to come full circle!

Myer:

I particularly enjoyed the presentation by Clementina Martinez-Masarweh titled ‘Mend the Future: Building Climate Literacy Through Reuse, Repair, and Policy Action.’ The scale of waste in the fast fashion industry was staggering; it was mind-blowing to learn that producing a single t-shirt requires 2,700 liters of water and that even if we stopped production today, there is enough clothing already in existence to last seven generations!

This theme carried over into the SCRAP SF presentation, which showcased an after-school program for middle and high school students. By teaching students to rework existing garments and sew excess fabrics, the program empowers them to make environmentally conscious decisions. As the Communications Lead Laki Rajan noted, when students rework their garments, they develop a deeper, more meaningful relationship with their clothes. I believe this is a powerful way to inspire long-term stewardship. Instead of viewing the garment as temporary, we’re teaching the next generation to value items they can repurpose and reuse in many different fashions- pun intended.

Lisa:

All of the presentations were informative, and I was struck by how our profession benefits from so many different types of expertise – there’s truly a place for everyone. I enjoyed the wonky data on PFAS and their impact on textile recycling (is there any product those forever chemicals AREN’T in?) by Claudia Richardson. Like Myer, I also appreciated the insights shared by Clementina Martinez Masarweh, who showed us how mending is part of Mexican culture, done with pride and artistry, becoming a fashion statement while extending the lifespan of fabrics in response to California’s SB 707 Textile Recovery Act. We were also happy to see the San Mateo Compost Improvement campaign featured and appreciate all the feedback and support for the work!

# # #

Lid Flip Insights Drive Environmental Outreach

October 23, 2025 Nancy and Stef

Since 2014 the Gigantic team has been conducting twice-yearly “lid flips” – noting the contents of residents’ cart set-outs to measure behavior change and to gauge the effectiveness of outreach – for the City of Livermore. It’s a dirty business, but a great learning experience. The results have informed campaign messaging, collateral and social posts, with a focus on the food scrap collection program. Since we started, observed participation in Organics has increased by 50% (from 31% of all households in 2014 to 46% in spring 2025) but there’s still a way to go.

Switching OOPS! Tags

The team has worked with the Livermore Recycles staff to think creatively about how to evolve our approach to include feedback and direct outreach. For several years we attached OOPS tags to the Organics cart, calling out contaminants. For the last two rounds of lid flips we switched to putting friendly reminder on Garbage carts, to draw attention to the large presence of food scraps and other compostable items in the Garbage and to encourage residents to put them in the Organics cart instead.

Reassuring Residents

In the spring of 2025, the outreach team noticed that more residents were approaching them with questions and comments, so for the fall flips we created a flyer to reassure people that this was not about punishing anyone and to explain why Livermore Recycles does the lid flips and how the results will be used. The handout also listed resources and contact information and was well received.

Tech Tools to the Rescue

We also adapted to new technology! Last year we ditched our handwritten logs for a tablet and started using Zabble, an AI-aided digital platform, to record the findings. Besides sparing us a lot of tedious data entry, the platform makes the calculation of key metrics easier and organizes the photos of the inspected carts into a searchable image library. This has helped us zero in on residents’ sorting behavior and even provided “showcase” images for Livermore Recycles.

While not full waste audits, lid flips are a useful tool that allow waste agencies to assess outreach progress and to refine messaging based on data. As always, tactics like lid flips and oops tags should be monitored and regularly assessed, with a goal of continuous improvement.

The Gigantic Team’s Top Takeaways from CRRA 2025

August 18, 2025 The Gigantic Team

As we have every year for decades (!), members of the Gigantic team attended CRRA 2025, the premier conference for zero waste and resource recovery professionals in California. Each GIS attendee had different highlights and takeaways, but as usual, we brought home information and inspiration to help our work.

Kas enjoyed seeing colleagues and making new connections:

One big highlight was getting to spend quality time with our team! It was inspiring to see Myer at his first multi day conference event; Nancy who always asks the most potent questions; and Lisa reflect on changes over the decades she has been involved with CRRA.

It was wonderful to see former Gigantic staffer Freddy Coronado excel at his role as President of NCRA (Northern California Recycling Alliance). And of course, we can’t forget the amazing Abbe sisters’ lyrics and performances at NCRA Players…talk about talent!

Beyond the vibe (which we can all agree was awesome), it was a wonderful opportunity to learn more about AB1383, AB54, new challenges of HHW and a chance to lean into the Behavior Change Technical Council. I am always inspired by presentations on reuse and circular economies — especially the presentation by business incubator Beam.

Stef attended remotely this year; while she missed the networking IRL, she still took away many meaningful tidbits:

Besides deep dives on waste characterization studies, lid flipping and SB54, I found some interesting connections between waste/recycling and energy. The fact that nitrogen production for fertilizer is the eleventh largest energy user—as shared by keynote panelist Cara Rose Ostrander—should give compost another selling point as an alternative to synthetic fertilizer.

The session about zero emission hauler fleets gave me hope that, although requirements for the private sector have been reversed, several haulers that have already started investing in EV trucks are unlikely to reverse course because they have seen dramatic benefits related to safety, noise and air pollution. One hauler’s biggest concern surprised me: it wasn’t EV trucks’ price tags (almost double the cost of conventional trucks) but the rise of energy-hungry AI data centers whose competition for electricity could drive up costs to keep EV fleets running.

Nancy relished the sessions but couldn’t stop worrying:

Spending three plus days in a beautiful, LEED certified hotel, surrounded by over 800 professionals working with heart and discipline to help people and the environment, was stimulating and also comforting. But I felt the constant intrusion of current events and upcoming challenges that will make all our work even harder. Climate change, the current political and social situation that is making recycling and waste reduction more challenging than it needs to be, and the coming threat of AI from social (job losses/shifts) and environmental (massive resource consumption) perspectives too often distracted me and I couldn’t help wondering, am I the only one obsessing like this or are others just putting on a brave front?

Myer was reminded of a primary role of environmental (and really any) communication:

Throughout CRRA I repeatedly heard the phrase, “meeting people where they are,” which truly resonated with me. I saw a great example of this during a session on the Santa Cruz County Green Schools Program. Instead of focusing on a single issue like litter and assuming it was the biggest problem, the program found more success by first surveying students to learn which environmental topics they were genuinely interested in. By addressing the students’ actual concerns, they achieved much higher engagement. They also found success when environmental education was integrated into the curriculum, not just “another thing” to add to it. This approach “turns learning into action,” empowering students with practical experience and according to Amity Sandage, the environmental literacy coordinator for the Santa Cruz County Office of Education, helps to “prepare students to be decision-makers”. Programs like these aimed at young students are a powerful tool for helping them develop sustainable habits that will hopefully last a lifetime.

Lisa was inspired by the connection between what we heard and our day-to-day work:

CRRA always helps me remember that our work matters! It’s too easy to get lost in the daily grind of details and deadlines, forgetting the big picture in the process. The keynote speakers reminded me of our ultimate purpose: to help steward the land. Tom Little Bear Nason, Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, reminded us that Earth is out of balance, but that Earth, Air, Fire and Water unite all of us, regardless of our skin color, where we live, or which god we worship. His words, along with those of Tim Krantz of the Wildlands Conservancy and Calla Rose Ostrander of the People, Food and Land Foundation, inspired me to reframe our work as ultimately that of restoration: We promote food scrap recycling to create compost to feed the soil; our watershed work helps keep pesticides out and heals the water; and much of our work reduces greenhouse gases and pollution to protect the air and all who breathe it.

After CRRA we get back to work with renewed purpose and look forward to the challenges of the next 12 months … before the next conference!

RIP, Arthur Boone: Bay Area Recycling Champion

December 11, 2024 The Gigantic Team

creative NCRA sign made with all recyclable materials — The Gigantic team worked with Arthur Boone to create this sign for NCRA

The Gigantic team would like to take a moment to salute and honor Arthur Boone, who passed away in October at the age of 86. Boone was a pioneer and force of nature for recycling education and outreach in the Bay Area since the 1980s.

Described in Northern California Recycling Association (NCRA)’s remembrance as “an innovator, visionary, and somewhat of a crank” Arthur Boone started out as an Episcopal minister, then a civil rights worker, before founding the Oakland Recycling Association.There, he brought active questions and a constant search for improvement to the local recycling scene, tirelessly calling out “Obstacles to Zero Waste” and working to eliminate them. In the following years he would serve NCRA in various positions, including some 30 years on their board, and came up with the idea for the Recycling Update Conference, an annual “speed dating” event featuring 10-minute presentations for and by industry professionals that is valued to this day.

One memorable collaboration – partially built on Boone’s front lawn – occurred in 2011 when he tasked us with creating a NCRA conference sign out of recycled materials to celebrate recycling and composting. It was a true team effort to cut the recycled metal, attach the glass pieces and cardboard curls, and hot-glue the fake leaves and orange slices. The sign keeps on going – helped by several repairs over the years. It’s a joy to see it (and get a team photo with the sign) at every NCRA Recycling Update. All in all, a great and ongoing reminder of the creative and can-do spirit of Boone.

Boone’s achievements, including credit for planting 1,000 trees in the Bay Area—several just a block from our office – have been noted in a Proclamation by StopWaste issued on his passing. After all his good work, may he rest in peace.

Gigantic team members with the sign at NCRA 2023

Keep Plastic Out of the Green Bin! A new anti-contamination campaign to improve compost quality

August 27, 2024October 11, 2024 Lisa Duba

This past year, we accepted the challenge to help San Mateo County develop a countywide social marketing campaign designed to improve compost quality by addressing contamination of food scraps and yard trimmings collected in the county.

The Project

Gigantic Idea Studio developed a scope of work that included as much of the community-based social marketing (CBSM) process as time and budget would allow:

Secondary research review of data from haulers, public agency RethinkWaste, transfer stations and composting facilities and similar campaigns,
Primary research via focus groups, with message development and testing and finally,
Campaign creative and a pilot study toolkit, with an implementation guide.

Partnering for Success

Gigantic partnered with R3 Consulting Group to analyze data and identify the top contaminants and sources of contamination. Unsurprisingly, plastics, especially film plastics, were most common. Multi-family dwellings (MFDs) and commercial businesses were the top sources. To keep within the time and budget, we chose plastic as the target contaminant, and MFDs as the target audience.

We also partnered with Green Motivate to look at messaging of similar campaigns conducted in Vermont; Boulder, Colorado; Oregon and Snohomish County, Washington. Each had compelling messages and images— some of which inspired our campaign.

Partnering with Engel Research Partners, we conducted focus groups in English, Spanish and Cantonese to test selected messages and learn more about the barriers and benefits related to food scrap and yard trimming collection programs.

Top Takeaways

Most people were unclear about what happens to the contents of their green bins after they are collected.
Once they understood that compost was used in gardens, parks and farms, residents seemed more motivated to learn how to prevent contamination.
Motivating messages included links to local agriculture, farmers/farmworkers and health.
But people also wanted clear, easy to understand instructions on how to compost correctly— not just inspiration and fluff.
Bin is the preferred term (vs. carts) to refer to wheeled carts and larger rolloff bins.

From these learnings we created a messaging strategy to inform a storytelling video, article and social media posts that included:

Awareness messaging: “Contaminated Green Bin=Contaminate Compost”
Motivational messaging: “We need your help making healthy compost for San Mateo County gardens, parks and farms,” and
Instructional messaging: “Keep All Plastic Out of the Green Bin” and “Food In/Plastic Out”.

For on-the-ground interventions, the campaign toolkit also included bin area signage, a downloadable kitchen sign, and a pilot study methodology. To reach the top monolingual, non-English speaking communities, we partnered with InterEthnica to adapt all campaign collateral into Spanish and Chinese.

While the CBSM components will be implemented locally by stakeholders, the County will be doing a media campaign to support on-the-ground efforts, running sometime this fall.

Lizzie Carrade of the San Mateo County Sustainability Department presented the campaign at the California Resource Recovery Association Annual Conference this year. We are proud to have been part of the team trying to address this pervasive problem.

Recycling: Hero or Villain? The Public Is Confused

April 18, 2024October 11, 2024 Nancy Roberts

Environmental specialists are working, like everyone else, in a polarized world where distrust of media and “truthiness” can make us question absolutely everything.

You’ve seen the headlines in everything from business press, public radio …

“Recycling Doesn’t Work”

“Plastic Recycling Doesn’t Work and Will Never Work”

“You Can’t Recycle Your Way Out”

“America’s Broken Recycling System”

At Gigantic, we work with clients whose jurisdictions:

Don’t accept “compostable” plastic
Do accept “compostable” plastic
Only accept Plastics # 1, 2, 5
Only accept “rigid” plastics
Ask you to put plastic bags in the Garbage
Ask you to put plastic bags in the Recycling
Accept paper cups in Recycling
Accept paper cups in the Garbage
Put pizza boxes in the Recycling
Put pizza boxes in the Organics

And on and on…

We can't recycle our way out of the plastic crisis - Insta post from Story of Stuff — Source: Story of Stuff Instagram

Is it any wonder that residents are wondering what’s going on?

If we had a magic wand, we’d wave it and make all this a lot simpler: focus on just a few of the most easily identified recyclable materials so that “waste” streams are clean and easily processed. We’d like to see:

All jurisdictions’ carts be the same color and labels as in other jurisdictions.
Every jurisdiction have the same “what goes where” instructions and
VASTLY simplify “what goes where” messaging to focus on the most recyclable items, in order to cut down on contamination. We have seen over and over that “wishcycling” is a real thing, and a real hassle for materials facilities.

But we don’t live in a perfect world. For now, environmental communicators need to be honest about the challenges of recycling, while reassuring the public that many problems can be solved and not to give up hope.

Understanding Your Audience: How Gigantic Uses Short-Form Videos to Reach Younger Audiences

September 26, 2023October 11, 2024 Myer Venzon

In 2021, Gigantic Idea Studio began producing short videos for the Clean Water Program Alameda County, featuring the popular mascots Fred the Frog and Izzy Egret. A study by the University of Delaware found that, “while mascots may be great at inspiring action through their cheers and high fives, the biggest impacts of mascots may come through displays of disappointment with a negative outcome”. With this in mind, we focused on messaging that showed the impact of pollution on Fred and Izzy.

A key strategy was to distribute the videos through paid promotion on platforms that were popular with younger audiences. At the time, TikTok was becoming a popular platform with Gen Z, so in addition to producing the short videos in the traditional horizontal format, we created vertical versions to allow an optimized experience on TikTok. Gigantic Idea Studio created a TikTok channel for the campaign, and also posted the videos on Instagram Reels.

The results were impressive. The vertical version of the Dog Poop video had a CPM of $2.36, compared to $7.12 for the horizontal version on YouTube. Although views are counted differently depending on the platform, the TikTok version of the video also received more views than on YouTube, despite having double the budget.

Gigantic Idea Studio also found success with organic content on Instagram Reels. Its first reel received 3,059 views, compared to the average of 26 views for its previous horizontal video posts. On Earth Day 2023, we posted another reel that received 1,318 views.

To date, Gigantic Idea Studio’s TikTok channel has received 1,720,973 views of 8 videos, through 14 campaigns, and 9,543 likes with 482 followers.

Takeaways

Gigantic Idea Studio’s success teaches a few important lessons about reaching younger audiences with short-form videos:

Use humor and creativity. Younger audiences are attracted to content that is entertaining and engaging.
Keep it short and sweet. Younger audiences have short attention spans, so aim for videos that are 30 seconds or less.
Use vertical video. Younger audiences are more likely to watch videos on their mobile devices, so make sure your videos are formatted vertically.
Promote your videos on the right platforms. TikTok is a great platform for reaching younger audiences, but other platforms like Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts are also gaining popularity.

If you’re looking to reach younger audiences with your marketing content, consider using short-form videos. Just be sure to keep the above tips in mind to create videos that are engaging and effective.

Do Californians Get the Connection of Food Waste and Climate Change?

August 22, 2023October 11, 2024 Nancy Roberts

Reducing food waste and diverting it and other organic materials from landfill is key to reducing methane emissions in our state (and around the world). California’s SB 1383 establishes targets for reducing organic waste going to landfill and increasing edible food recovery, and public agencies across the state are scrambling to implement it. The law, including outreach for it, was a major focus at this year’s California Resource Recovery Association (CRRA) Conference. The Gigantic team’s presentation was designed to contribute to that discussion.

How much do Californians already know about food waste and its connection to climate change? What would motivate more residents to reduce food waste? Back in 2020, we conducted a brief statewide survey of Californians to ask a few questions about their understanding of greenhouse gas emissions, landfill and food waste. We re-ran the survey with some additional questions in 2023 to see if the implementation of SB 1383 was impacting residents’ understanding of food waste and its relation to the warming planet. In comparing the data from 2023 to that of 2020 we noted:

84% of respondents think that human-caused climate change is happening; this is up
4 percentage points from 2020.
The number of respondents who are very or extremely worried about climate change is stable at 50%. There is an increase of those who say they are more worried than they were a year ago: 46% vs 40% in 2020.
Only 33% of respondents understood that food scraps break down and release methane in landfill. This is down from 42% in 2020.
Despite the requirements of SB 1383 that every resident have access to organics composting service, only 47% of respondents confirmed that their food scraps are collected separately from garbage. 28% said that food scraps go in the garbage and 16% said they don’t have food scrap collection service. 8% did not know.
When asked to select the three best reasons for reducing food waste, “The right thing to do” was selected by 45% of respondents (down from 49% in 2020). “Fighting climate change” was selected by 32% of respondents.

The survey results demonstrate that many Californians understand that climate change is happening and they are worried about it, but do not yet understand the connection between food waste going to landfill and the climate crisis. We see this as a possible opportunity for future outreach: Many of the actions that fight climate change are quite a big “ask” for most people: “Buy a new electric car!” “Replace your water heater!” “Stop eating meat!” In contrast, cutting food waste is both simpler and has many practical benefits, such as saving money. Could outreach about cutting food waste to fight climate change be the daily action that makes people feel positive and hopeful about their actions and the future? This is a question we’d like to explore in future research.

To receive a copy of the full survey report, please email Gigantic.

Partner Power: Building Relationships to Amplify Our Messages

June 29, 2023 Nancy Roberts

image of sample partner memo with images — Sample partner memo; click to view.

For our government and non-profit partners in environmental behavior change, the good news is: we’re all in this together. When our messaging about recycling, waste reduction, energy conservation and respect for nature spreads far and wide, we all win! So it’s smart to help each other reach as many people as possible.

That’s where the partner power comes in by creating a network of like-minded organizations and a process for sharing partner messages across groups and platforms. It’s a very simple idea: compile your sharable messages into a few easily “cut and pasted” formats, such as newsletter article, Facebook or Instagram, then send the memo to a curated list of partner organizations that pick up and share the content on their channels.

It’s a Win-Win

Not only does the partner memo amplify the original sender’s message, it provides content for those of us struggling to come up with new things to say in our e-news, website or social media.

Get started!

Make a list of the top organizations that share your values and communication topics. Some might be direct “competitors” such as a non-profit with a similar focus, or local governments, more general community organizations (that would be interested in helping their constituents, such as the public library. Reach out to these organizations and explain that you’d like to share content with them and invite them to share theirs with you. Set up your memo template and start sharing!

Top Tips for Effective Partner Memos

Send regularly, but not TOO often

Send your partner memos on a regular schedule if possible, say once a quarter. For time-sensitive messages, be sure to allow plenty of notice so that your content can be included at the right time for the recipient. In other words, don’t send your Christmas post to partners on December 23^rd!

Make it easy!

The easier you make it, the more likely your content is to be shared. Include suggested headlines, pertinent links and, ALWAYS, images. Link to downloadable images that are properly sized for each channel. Be sure to specify if a photo credit as needed.

Reciprocate!

Share and share alike, right? Be open to sharing other organizations’ content in your channels. Showing the world that you are a good partner concerned about your community is an excellent strategy – and it’s the right thing to do.

Sometimes the simplest tools can be the most effective. A little effort to set up the partner memo system will pay off for months to come as your partner power and messaging takes flight.

The Role of Art in Making Change

March 9, 2023 Stefanie Pruegel

Big, complex environmental issues like climate change can easily overwhelm and lead to resignation and denial, instead of creative problem solving. While facts and how-to information have their place in environmental behavior change campaigns, so do art and fostering imagination beyond rational understanding. The Oakland Museum of California currently has an excellent exhibition about African American educator and activist Angela Davis, whose fight against mass incarceration and racism in the 60’s and 70’s made her an icon of Black liberation around the world. The show draws on a huge archive of newspaper clippings, posters, pamphlets, buttons and pop culture objects to tell Davis’s story in the political and cultural context of the time. What makes many of the visuals so powerful is how the call for social change and art are intertwined. Most striking are the political posters with bold, screen-printed images and collages.

In a recorded interview, looping on a large screen as part of the exhibit, Davis comments on the crucial role art plays in social change movements. She notes, “Art can produce knowledge that doesn’t occur with a simple political speech.” Such knowledge doesn’t arise from taking in facts alone and involves much more than the rational part of our brain. As with storytelling, art activates all parts of the human brain, enabling the level of empathy and engagement that can indeed motivate the change we need to see. This is especially important when there is urgency to act but the path forward isn’t clear. As Davis says, “Art enriches our ideas about change. It allows us to grasp what we cannot yet understand and enables us to imagine different modes of being.”

Vivid visual communication is a staple of effective behavior change campaigns.The upcoming Earth Month offers an opportunity to make art a campaign focus. How do you use the power of art in your outreach?