Community Organics Recycling Program

In 2017 the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association (LHENA) set a goal to expand renter participation in Minneapolis' organics recycling program by providing an option for renters and condominium owners who do not have access to the city's organics recycling carts. Organics recycling is one of the simplest ways for people to lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce landfilled and incinerated waste, but Minneapolis residents living in buildings with 5 or more units do not have access to curbside pickup. With over 85% of Lowry Hill East residents renting, a large portion of our community does not have easy access to organics recycling.

Enter Katlyn Flannery, a Lowry Hill East resident and LHENA volunteer. Flannery worked through LHENA to develop the Community Organics Recycling Program (CORP), which allows renters to recycle their organic waste at drop-off sites stationed at local businesses. The sites are maintained by a dedicated group of community volunteers along with financial and staff support from neighborhood associations.
 

Within six months of launching CORP, 350 people were using the initial site at a neighborhood co-op to recycle their organic waste. One year in, 1000 people had signed up for the usage and a second site had been added. These two sites immediately doubled the number of South Minneapolis drop-off locations and became the first and only community-driven sites in the full Twin Cities area, perhaps in the state of Minnesota. Today, CORP spans multiple communities, offering organics recycling opportunities in Minneapolis' most densely populated and culturally diverse neighborhoods.

Your donation will help secure the viability of this innovative program, expand it, and make it a model for community-led renter organics recycling access beyond our immediate community.