How Cody Marshall of The Recycling Partnership Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice
An Interview With Monica Sanders
Ensure that all households can recycle. 40 million U.S. households still lack the ability to recycle as easily as they can throw something away. Building equitable access to recycling services is a critical step to a stronger system.
We are standing at a critical juncture in our fight against climate change, and it is heartening to see young leaders rising to this enormous challenge. Across the globe, they are initiating change, voicing their concerns, and catalyzing action toward sustainable solutions for our planet. These young change-makers are not just the future; they are the driving force of the present. As part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Cody Marshall.
Cody Marshall is an executive of The Recycling Partnership and serves as the organization’s Chief System Optimization Officer. As a mission-driving NGO, The Recycling Partnership is committed to advancing a circular economy by building a better recycling system.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I grew up in Frazeysburg, Ohio, a rural, blue-collar community of about a thousand people where hard work is the order of the day. I always liked being outside, was active in sports, and also spent time outdoors working as a farm hand and in landscaping.
After high school, I majored in environmental science and then earned my graduate degree in public administration. Believe it or not, my career in recycling actually kicked off during my freshman year. I began working for the university’s recycling program, which was a lot of fun (partially because I got to drive the recycling truck to classes). Little did I know this job would launch my career!
Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
A series of life events shaped my “why.”
First, I believe growing up in a farming community with hardworking people like my parents taught me the value of having a purpose–we should all be working to make each other’s lives better. I was also fortunate enough to travel the country during college and got to interact with different cultures.
I became interested in the recycling industry after witnessing it firsthand in college. After college, I managed a local government program in Orange County, N.C., and saw landfill operations next to a lower-income neighborhood. It was incredible to see how recycling could prevent things from being “buried” in a landfill, how it could serve as a foundation for a sustainable culture, and how I could personally make improvements in the community as a good steward of tax dollars that inevitably served the state and region’s economy.
All of these experiences shaped my respect and appreciation for the environment, while also emphasizing the importance of bringing people together to solve large-scale problems.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
We set out to challenge the status quo at The Recycling Partnership. We do the hands-on hard work of bringing all the relevant parties together to build solutions — this is a new way of thinking about problem-solving in the recycling space. We’re working with businesses, communities, and government to transform and improve every aspect of recycling — from how products are made to ensuring consumers understand how to recycle correctly.
Our 80-person team includes some of the smartest, most creative and dedicated problem-solvers in the world. As an organization, we want to bring people and ideas together to drive change — the truth is, there is no silver bullet or organization that will bring about the massive changes we need to solve our waste problem. But we do know that it requires a partnership approach and improvement in the recycling system.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
When we started The Recycling Partnership, we were small. Part of the initial challenge was understanding the overall U.S. system. But believe it or not, there was no central database that captured all of this information. There are 9,000 separate recycling programs in the United States, and each operates independently. What may be recyclable in my hometown of Frazeysburg might not be recyclable where I now live in North Carolina. There is no uniform standard.
So I started calling 400 local governments to learn about their recycling programs. It was the beginning of our national database. Our database got a significant boost in 2019 when Apple provided us with a grant and some technical assistance. Today, our national database is the comprehensive source for local recycling information across the U.S.
Now we have a fantastic team growing and managing this database. It gives us a better understanding of how the public recycling system works. It’s also the backbone of our new Recycle Check platform, which is designed to give consumers information on what packaging is recyclable in their communities. Sixty percent of consumers are confused about what and how to recycle, and we aim to clear up that confusion with Recycle Check.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
The only way I’ve gotten where I am is because people along the way believed in me. I was backed by someone every step of the way.
When I was a senior in high school, I met the dean of the School of Arts & Sciences, Dr. Roger Thibault, who helped me set up interviews. His taking a chance on me had a huge impact: these interviews led to scholarships and helped fund my education and put me on my career track.
In college, I was hired as a recycling truck driver at school by a man named Craig Wittig, and he continued to put me in touch with the right people, which eventually enabled me to interview for my first real job after graduate school.
Right out of graduate school at Bowling Green State University, Rob Taylor hired me in Orange County, N.C. I had very little experience and the job was quite large, but Rob recognized my potential.
And then there was Keefe Harrison, who I met at a county job fair. She supported what I was doing and wanted my zeal and mission-driven focus at the consulting firm where she was employed at the time. Later, I helped launch The Recycling Partnership with Keefe, who serves as CEO, and others.
The most satisfying thing about these mentors: I get to work with Keefe, Craig, and Rob at The Recycling Partnership on a daily basis — all are now part of the organization. (The dean is enjoying a well-deserved retirement.)
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
First, we’ve created a plan for overhauling the U.S. residential recycling system. Recycling is not the only solution to our waste and climate change problems, but it has to be part of the solution. Our plan calls for a $17 billion investment over five years with a $30 billion return in economic benefits over 10 years. Much of that funding will come through public-private investment, including through policy initiatives (such as Extended Producer Responsibility) that require companies to fund local recycling systems.
Secord, we’re holding companies accountable while providing them with a way to be part of the solution. We call it “insist and assist.” We insist that our funding partners support our mission, provide financial support at a level that will drive real outcomes, and play well with others. At the same time, we assist our funding partners in meeting their sustainability and circularity goals. By deploying corporate funding, we can provide grants that enable us to touch over 3,000 different communities, develop tools and data, and create a roadmap to make packaging more circular.
Third, in addition to our work with companies, communities and policymakers, we are very focused on the human behavior aspect of recycling. Our research tells us that U.S. residents overwhelmingly support recycling — 80% say it has a positive impact, but, about two-thirds of household recyclables end up incinerated or in landfills each year and more than half of this loss is because people are confused about what and how to recycle. We launched our Center for Sustainable Behavior & Impact as a hub for human-entered solutions that drive measurable improvement in recycling. Through research (roughly 10,000 people surveyed so far) and pilots (impacting over 52,000 households as of today) we are identifying trends, motivations, and barriers that will unlock strategies to favorably impact recycling behavior.
Are there [five/three] things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
We have a plan to overhaul residential recycling in the U.S.:
1. Make all packaging recyclable. We believe in a future where all packaging is circular (meaning all packaging can be reused, composted, or recycled) — which will eliminate the guesswork of recycling.
2. Ensure that all households can recycle. 40 million U.S. households still lack the ability to recycle as easily as they can throw something away. Building equitable access to recycling services is a critical step to a stronger system.
3. Help the public recycle better. Our research shows that 60% of people believe recycling is confusing. That is completely understandable because we do not have one single system in the U.S.
4. Support policy to help pay for a better system. Cash-strapped communities cannot afford to be the only source of funding for a better recycling system. Smart policy that requires private-public partnerships will help to pay for a better recycling system.
5. Invest in the future. With a $17 billion investment over five years, we can double the recycling rate and deliver the benefits of recycling to the public. That might sound like a lot, but for context, it represents 0.5% of annual sales of the U.S. consumer packaged goods industry over five years. And with smart policy, that investment will come from private-public partnerships. The return on that investment is $30 billion over 10 years. That’s a good investment — one we cannot afford not to make.
This is the signature question we ask in most of our interviews. What are your “3 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why?
1 . I love what President Obama said in 2015 on Marc Maron’s podcast about democratic societies. He said, “Sometimes the task of the government is to make incremental improvements or try to steer the ocean liner two degrees north or south so that 10 years from now, suddenly, we are in a very different place than we were… At the moment, people may feel like we need a 50-degree turn — we don’t need a two-degree turn. And you say, ‘Well, if I turn 50 degrees, the whole ship turns (over.)’” The same is true about our recycling system.
I wish someone would have told me this when I started out because it is emblematic of the space we are in at The Recycling Partnership. The problems we are trying to solve are massive and while we can move fast on certain things, we continue to push forward with practical measures so as not to have knee-jerk reactions. Moving this large ship takes time and a lot of people.
2. The recognition that it takes a lot of people is another key lesson. The challenges we’re addressing at The Recycling Partnership need involvement and support from private industry, from government, to local communities, and many other stakeholders. We always say “partnership is in our name for a reason” because collaboration is key to all that we do.
3. The truth is there is no silver bullet, and no one has figured it out. It can be intimidating when you first start. There are so many smart people in this space. Once I recognized that no one person or organization has “the” answer, I’ve been more comfortable sharing my point of view and it is my point of view — mixed with others — that help find the right path forward.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
If I could only have one breakfast with one person — it would be Stephen Dubner, co-author of the Freakenomics book series and podcaster. I really appreciate how he approaches complex issues in really creative and often practical ways. The recycling industry needs that type of thinking. I’d love to hear how he’d think through solutions to some of our biggest challenges, specifically behavior change.
Who wouldn’t love talking about recycling over eggs and coffee?
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
About the Interviewer: Monica Sanders JD, LL.M, is the founder of “The Undivide Project”, an organization dedicated to creating climate resilience in underserved communities using good tech and the power of the Internet. She holds faculty roles at the Georgetown University Law Center and the Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. Professor Sanders also serves on several UN agency working groups. As an attorney, Monica has held senior roles in all three branches of government, private industry, and nonprofits. In her previous life, she was a journalist for seven years and the recipient of several awards, including an Emmy. Now the New Orleans native spends her time in solidarity with and championing change for those on the frontlines of climate change and digital divestment. Learn more about how to join her at: www.theundivideproject.org
How Cody Marshall of The Recycling Partnership Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.