ABOUT US
Our Mission
When it comes to waste reduction, the Greenwich community leads in so many ways. In 2018, the Town of Greenwich became only the second municipality in the state to pass a bag ordinance, and our community was one of the first to establish a food scrap recycling program in southwestern Connecticut. Greenwich also diverts more tons of textiles from the waste stream than any Connecticut municipality.
Yet, Greenwich's trash tonnages continue to rise, while recycling rates drop. These trends are costly for public health, the environment and our wallets.
The mission of Waste Free Greenwich is to engage, educate and empower the Greenwich community to waste less, providing solutions at home, school and work through the 6Rs: refuse, reuse, reduce, repair, recycle and rot.
Waste Free Greenwich is breaking new ground with our innovative programs, educational initiatives and collaborative partnerships to address these challenges and inspire community action for a waste free future in Greenwich.
Our History
Waste Free Greenwich was founded in 2019 when a group of residents resolved to start a food scrap recycling program in Greenwich. At first these volunteers worked under Greenwich Recycling Advisory Board (GRAB), a town advisory board to the First Selectman, but soon reorganized as an independent environmental organization called Waste Free Greenwich.
After launching the municipal food scrap recycling program in June 2020, Waste Free Greenwich expanded our objectives to raise awareness about our unsustainable waste management system and to focus on solutions at home, school and work, highlighting issues such as wasted food, environmental injustice, plastic pollution and much more.
In 2023, Waste Free Greenwich became a 501(c)(3) to better serve the Greenwich community. As an independent nonprofit organization, Waste Free Greenwich does not receive funding from the Town of Greenwich. We rely on individual donations and grant funding to realize our mission to engage, educate and empower the Greenwich community to waste less.
A planning meeting with founding members Myra Klockenbrink, Ali Ghiorse, Svetlana Wasserman, Julie DesChamps, Heather Ewing, Heidi Matonis and Sally Davies (Feb 18, 2020) Photo: Leslie Yager