Although Waste Recyclers Fiji Limited started having discussions on the idea of dedicating a day to celebrate recycling and honor the work of those involved in this space in 2019, the inaugural GRD celebration took place in 2021.
The celebration in Suva was held at a much smaller scale, largely due to the fact that many did not see value in attaching with a recycling event, lack of knowledge regarding recycling and proper waste management and lives attached to it, and in some cases, due to ignorance.
This did not discourage or dampen the spirits of some like WRFL who initiated activism work but instead motivated them to put more effort to fight for relevance and recognition that recycling should be seen as an industry with great potential and the need to hear the voices and struggles of those that have contributed immensely to reduce the volume of waste materials ending up at our landfill and dumpsites and keep our environment clean.
Pacific Recycling Foundation’s business arm, Waste Recyclers Fiji Limited in partnership with Swire Shipping, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and Pacific Energy organised Fiji’s first Global Recycling Day celebration in 2021 at the Vodafone Arena with an aim to honor and recognise the efforts of various stakeholders in the recycling space, particularly the waste picking community who rely on the collection of recyclables such as PET bottles, tin cans, aluminum cans, and metal for their daily survival. The day also marked the formal commencement of WRFL’s vision of creating awareness and changing people’s perceptions and behaviour towards recycling.
