Food Recovery: Strategies for Success

September 30, 2026

Food waste is a widespread economic, social, and environmental challenge: nearly one-third of food is never eaten, costing a family of four almost $3,000 annually, even though about 70% of discarded food is edible and 1 in 5 U.S. families with children experiences food insecurity. Producing and landfilling uneaten food wastes natural resources and generates greenhouse gas emissions, making food-waste reduction an important climate strategy.

In this webinar, leaders from the National Food Recovery Association and FarmLink will share innovative strategies for building and scaling food recovery programs, and how these programs are creating systems that are making the difference.

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Greenbelt’s Save As You Throw Program Is Already Reducing Trash

July 16, 2026

Trash costs are rising, and communities are looking for practical ways to help residents save money while reducing waste. That’s exactly what The City of Greenbelt set out to do with its Save As You Throw Program.

In this webinar, sustainability experts from the City of Greenbelt and WasteZero discussed the program’s early results, how Greenbelt built support among residents and City Council, what feedback they heard from residents and staff, and how other communities could adopt a SAYT-style program.

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Volunteers: A Critical Capacity-Building Resource for Recyclers

April 8, 2026

Did you know … almost 25% of U.S. adults volunteer every year, volunteers are 66% more likely to donate to the organization they support, 83%  are driven by the desire to make a positive community impact, and most importantly, volunteers are effective ambassadors and “evangelists” for agencies’ missions and causes.

In this webinar, we were joined by program coordinators of three successful programs that are tapping into this powerful resource.

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Why Buying Recycled Matters & How Baltimore County Is Leading the Way

February 11, 2026

In April 2025, Baltimore County, MD took a step toward sustainability by instituting a Buy Recycled and Environmentally Preferable Products and Services Policy. This initiative directs procurement agencies to prioritize recycled and eco-friendly products and services wherever possible.

Join us for an overview and history of the program followed by a Q&A session where attendees shared ideas and got answers to their questions.

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PaintCare is Coming Soon! Are You Ready?

November 19, 2025

Starting in early 2026, PaintCare will roll out a statewide system for collecting and recycling leftover paint. From HHW programs and recycling centers to retail/hardware stores and public drop-off sites, the program is designed to support and partner with local entities to manage paint responsibly.

Listen in as Jacob Saffert, PaintCare’s Director of Eastern States, walks us through the ins and outs of the program.

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Recycling Utopia: Communications Strategies to Maximize Participation and Minimize Contamination

October 29, 2025

Listen in as Paul Varga of Frederick County Division of Solid Waste & Recycling, and Darin Sheasgreen of Recycle Coach, share proven and practical strategies you can employ to ensure your residents put the right stuff in the right bin!

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What's Next for Recycling in Maryland? Key Updates from MRN Townhall

May 15, 2025

MRN hosted an insightful town hall, providing a rundown of crucial legislative updates from the 2025 MD General Assembly session and a glimpse into the future of recycling in the state.

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Local Food Waste Prevention Campaigns: a Potent Source of Economic and Climate Benefits

April 20, 2025

Listen in as a panel of experts share their experiences with behavior change campaigns for residential households as well as commercial, industrial, and food recovery organizations at the local level.

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Recycling Works: Gain Community Support by Telling the Real Story

March 27, 2025

Learn how you can debunk disinformation in this webinar as Chaz Miller, Miller Recycling Associates and Gretchen Carey, MassRecycle set the truth straight—recycling does work. Gain tips on how to work with, not against, the media and how to get our story out.

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Safety: It's Everybody's Business

February 27, 2025

In this webinar, Jim Olson, former VP of Safety at Republic Services shares training, process, equipment, and technology solutions you can employ to build a culture of safety in your operation … and save lives.

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Arlington's Multifamily Food Scraps Collection Program

November 21, 2024

In this webinar, Arlington County's Chief of the Solid Waste Bureau Erik Grabowsky and Principal Environmental Management Specialist Adam Riedel provide an update on the Arlington's ambitious food scraps composting initiative.

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Catalyzing Community Good through Building Material Reuse

October 17, 2024

In this webinar, Tom Patzkowski, Director of Donations at Community Forklift, shares the social, economic, and environmental justice impacts of providing equitable access to reusable materials for households with limited resources and community organizations serving the greater good.

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Effective Options for Battery Collection & Recycling

September 26, 2024

In this Maryland Recycling Network webinar, Mark Steadman, Regional Program Manager for Call2Recycle, walks us through the daunting journey from New Battery to Hazardous Waste. Along the way, he details steps you can employ in your recycling programs to ensure safe collection and recycling of the growing flood of nickel, alkaline, lithium and lead batteries finding their way into every facet of our homes and businesses.

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Myths and Facts Surrounding Textile Recycling

July 25, 2024

In this webinar, Helpsy Chief of Staff Lisa Sciannella sets the record straight on the problem that is textile waste. She dispelled common misconceptions about used clothing and showcased solutions in action Helpsy has developed in partnerships with several counties to continue to divert textiles from Maryland's waste stream.

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Research and Insights into Recycling Behavior Inside the Home

April 25, 2024

Recycling is a complex reverse supply chain that begins in the household, but there is limited visibility into what actually happens in the home behind closed doors. While we know approximately half of all household recyclables never make it to a materials recycling facility, we don’t know exactly why. We certainly have ideas of what the challenges might be, but what could we be missing?

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