Collection partners
Assisting public retailing partners in managing their recycling sections and raising the awareness of their customers
General public retail shops collect lamps and household WEEE in recycling bins made available to their customers present in stores, and may also have professional WEEE that they themselves have used and that they collect in separate bins, not visible to the general public. To train employees handling on-site waste a practical guide helps them to understand how the recycling industry works and the implementation of collection methods for the various streams, were established in 2019.
In addition to these elements supplied in the practical guide, communications media (a poster and information leaflet) are available so that the teams can provide information to customers. These can be downloaded from ecosystem’s on-line catalogue.
To assist shops in managing their WEEE and lamp recycling, ecosystem has mandated 8 ambassadors to visit shops all over France. In 2019, 8,940 visits were made. Their purpose is ensure that each shop is provided with an optimum service, from the collection of waste at the sale point up to its return to treatment processes. These visits help to train and provide information to personnel on take--back obligations and provision of customer information, collection procedures as well as the provision and maintenance of recycling bins suitable for each type of sales point.
Providing information to the customers of our professional retail partners on lamp and professional WEEE collection in order to develop collection
Communication measures established in 2019 in partnership with the retailers of professional electrical equipment, in particular Rexel and Sonepar, have enabled our recycling awareness-raising messages to be communicated to audiences that would normally be difficult to reach: electricians, plumbers-heating technicians, builders and installers/fitters.
Thanks to the combination of communication initiatives on the internet (web campaign with dynamic banners on the e-shop, specifically designed web pages for our service offering, mailing using a 80,000 clients database, etc.) the publication of adverts in catalogues (2,500 to 70,000 copies distributed depending on the media used,) distribution of flyers, a video in the network’s offices, display of sorting instruction posters and our presence at retailing trade fairs, we have highlighted the diversity of electrical equipment that can be recycled, as this was still largely unknown.
An information sheet and practical guide for teams present at sales points have also been developed. These documents provide them with the keys to understanding ecosystem’s collection service offering in order that the teams can act as ambassadors and give details to their customers on the processes to follow for the efficient collection of electrical equipment.
Supporting local authority partner collection operations and facilitating the provision of information to their users
In 2019, to help local authorities manage the various waste streams and train their employees, ecosystem established four practical guides specifically on household WEEE, professional WEEE, bulbs and small fire extinguishers. These guides enable collection to be implemented and best practices to be communicated and provide practical information to raise the awareness of users who come to municipal recycling facilities (MRF) to dispose of their used products.
In order to organise these collection points, improve sorting and make the jobs of MRF employees easier, ecosystem also provides signs that summarise sorting instructions. These are adapted to the different conditions in which streams are stored at the collection points.
A local presence is an additional driver to communicate information, particularly though 3 regional speed meetings in which ecosystem took part in 2019 within the context of its partnership with the association Rudologia. These meetings raised the awareness of 60 local authorities on managing collection of waste for which we are responsible.
Calling upon solidarity via a collection event organised in partnership with local authorities and social and solidarity economy organisations
In 2019 ecosystem organised its second edition of the “Listen to your heart!’ toy collection operation. The purpose of this operation carried out during the end of year festivities is to raise the awareness of both children and adults in donating, redeploying or reusing toys.
The enthusiasm of local authorities enabled 609 collection points to be set up in mainland France and in the overseas territories, involving public services and premises of the 44 participating local authorities (schools, municipal recycling facilities, libraries and media libraries, reception desks in town halls).
In total, 1,708 collection boxes were filled, representing 26 tonnes of toys. These were then distributed to 28 Emmaüs community partners as gifts for families in need, or sold at a social price to fund inclusive employment.
