Leveraging outreach opportunities with partners to maximize community connections

Staff used existing outreach opportunities with partners to connect with community on zero-waste actions. Staff attended community events, engaged the county’s Trusted Messengers program(External link) participants and select Zero Waste Plan community groups, and attended other meetings and events throughout the summer.

County staff presented to 25 Trusted Messenger participants in June 2024 to share information on the amount of waste produced and the county’s Zero Waste Plan, including actions to expand the reach of county waste education, grants and other programming and create a materials management system that reduces racial disparities and advances equity. Participants were interested in learning about waste issues. Some participants shared that they hadn’t given a lot of thought to waste issues before but were interested in learning more and sharing ideas and resources with their communities.

Participants were invited to tour the county’s drop-off facility in Brooklyn Park in July. Participants were glad to see the household hazardous waste collection process in action and expressed interest in doing more to promote the proper disposal of batteries, bulbs, and other hazardous items. Participants described opportunities to reduce waste in their own operations, for example reducing single-use water bottles for religious celebrations, and shared unique barriers for their communities, such as a distrust of public water service. County staff shared information about education resources and assistance available to improve recycling at community locations.

To support community-led zero waste action, the county offers the Green Partners Environmental Education grants(External link) to fund community-led education and behavior change zero-waste projects. In August 2024, the county established a new program - the Community Zero Waste Grant Program - that will focus on community-led projects that directly reduce or divert waste in communities that have higher barriers to waste programming. Examples of projects could include community-led swaps, repair clinics, special material collections, and recycling or organics drop-off sites that address waste programming gaps and/or culturally specific needs in communities with inequitable access to zero-waste tools.