OUR STORY

Green Collect is the initiative of Sally Quinn & Darren Andrews. In 2001 they sparked the idea for a resource recovery business that provided work for people who faced barriers to employment. The pilot project focused on the hospitality industry, diverting 4.6 tonnes of cork from landfill & generated employment for vulnerable people.

By 2005, the enterprise had evolved to transform ‘waste’ from offices through reuse, remanufacture and recycling. In 2019, Green Collect was awarded the Australian “Social Enterprise of the Year - Small Enterprise” by Social Traders.

Today, Green Collect enables hundreds of organisations to achieve their environmental & social goals through resource recovery, processing more than 150 tonnes of stationery, electronics, furniture, clothing, and homewares every year and employing over 50 people.

And, we’re building a much bigger movement - in Victoria and across the world - of social enterprises committed to a circular economy that cares for people and planet.

HOW WE WORK

We are deeply committed to moving towards zero waste, so we’ve developed circular processes with innovation and perseverence. We see the value in resources and work to retain them and repurpose them, so nothing becomes ‘waste’. We hand process every item we collect, assessing each for its reuse possibilities and transformed for its next use.

Within Green Collect, we deeply care for people and are committed to their wellbeing and development. We see that environmental sustainability and social justice are vital complements in a regenerative, sustainable society.