2016 Calgary Can AGM

We had our 2016 AGM on Friday, January 15 and some of the highlights included acknowledging 2015 accomplishments, highlighting 2016 plans, volunteer appreciation and adding three new board members!

2015 ACCOMPLISHMENTS

2015 was a big year for Calgary Can:

• Winners of the SVP FastPitch Competition ($11,000)
• Winner of CCVO 2015 Non-Profit Innovation Award ($2,500)
• Winners of the Westmount Charter School FastPitch Competition ($2,000)
• New logo and website
• Over 300 bottle pickers surveys completed via Picker Engagement Events
• Bottle Picker Advisory Committee (BPAC) grew
• Attended Vulnerable Population training at the Drop In Centre
• Practicum student joined the Calgary Can team

2016 PLANS

We don't want to lose momentum, so we are going to continue to build on the work done in 2015:

• Implement the Community Recycling Program (name TBD)
• Moving the Mobile Depot forward (i.e. exploring ideas, forming partnerships, looking at funding options, etc.)
• Storytelling project (more information to come)
• Pop-Up engagement events
• ...and so much more!

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION

Calgary Can has some pretty amazing volunteers who devote many hours of their time and work tirelessly towards achieving our goals. We wanted to acknowledge their tremendous contribution because we definitely wouldn't be where we are without them!

CALGARY CAN BOARD OF DIRECTORS

We are excited to work with this energetic and passionate Board of Directors in 2016:

• Aman Adatia (Director)*
• Chris Lake (Director)*
• Kaitlyn Hill (Secretary)
• Kate Letizia (President)
• Nancy Dalton (Director)
• Nancy Hansen (Director)
• Natalie Andrijancic (Treasurer)
• Pat Letizia (Director)
• Seth Leon (Director)*

* New Board Member

Calgary Can Board 2016: Top Left to Right (Seth Leon, Nancy Hansen, Chris Lake, Aman Adatia, Nancy Dalton); Bottom Left to Right (Pat Letizia, Kate Letizia, Kaitlyn Hill, Natalie Andrijancic)

Calgary Can Sparkle Party Fundraiser a Success!

Happy New Year!

We held our second annual public fundraiser on December 31, 2015 - the Calgary Can Sparkle Party - and it was a great success! More than just a good time, we received a number of generous donations and we were able to spread the word about the work that Calgary Can is currently doing and planning for 2016.

Proceeds from the event will be used for running our Bottle Picker Advisory Committee (BPAC), monthly pop-up engagement events at the Uptown Bottle Depot, public advocacy and training related to the social legitimization of informal bottle picking and the development of three innovative program offerings in 2016:

• A mobile bottle depot (social enterprise).
• Development of 'Binner's Bins' for residents and small businesses to separate refundables for bottle pickers.
• Community recycling program that connects bottle pickers' routes with households and business partners for refundables pick up.

Thank you to everyone that attended, and of course to all of our AMAZINGLY generous and loyal sponsors for their continuous support!

GOLD SPONSORS:

• Springfield Electric
• Rita Andrijancic

SILVER SPONSORS:

• Creating Value Inc.
• Dashing Dishes
• The Naaco Truck

BRONZE SPONSORS:

• Adorn Jewellery Design
• Angie Buchanan
• Bellafusion
• Bohemian Hobo
• Cafe Rosso
• Camp Brand Goods
• Colleen Wanner
• Goldgrass Home
• Earth Distributors
• Juice Because
• Kyle Stone
• Irene Shields
• Bob Shields & Kelly Huffman
• Market Collective
• Pampered Chef
• Sugo
• Tom Renney
• Willow Park Wine & Spirits
• Without Papers Pizza

A Different Kind of Entrepreneur

Picture a typical entrepreneur…

Big ideas.

Hard working.

Knows everyone.

Maker of their own success.

You can imagine the quick click of their shoes on the pavement of the Stephen Avenue Mall as they happily rush from one meeting to another…

This is the story of just such a person. A self-started entrepreneur with a great work ethic, a huge network and tonnes of positive energy. He is creative and generous; a go-to guy that people respect. The difference between him and the entrepreneur you pictured above? Replace the sound of the quick click of leather soled shoes on Stephen Avenue with the rolling and clanging sound of a shopping cart over an uneven alleyway.

Why the shopping cart? Because this is a different kind of entrepreneur. The kind that gets to makes his own schedule and work outside with friends everyday. The kind that’s heavily invested in his community, volunteering hours every week to build cleaner, safer streets and parks downtown. The kind that’s also an activist, dedicated to the environment and to fighting big issues like homelessness and poverty.

This kind of entrepreneur works in the informal recycling business – as a bottle picker.

And he’s not alone. It is predicted that there are well over 1000 people who currently bottle pick in Calgary. Many do it for the flexibility it allows, or for the fresh air and exercise. The majority, however, have no other option for making money – whether due to a mental or physical disability, lack of a fixed address or possibly because they don’t speak English.

Regardless of why they do it, they make Calgary a cleaner and greener place. More than 129,200 tonnes of recyclable materials were diverted from Alberta landfills through beverage container recycling in 2014. Bottle pickers played a significant part in this impressive number – often recovering bottles and cans that were carelessly thrown into the waste stream instead of a recycling bin.

And while bottle picking certainly provides our entrepreneur with the ability to pursue his personal goals while also generating some income – he faces significant challenges: unsteady and low pay (many bottle pickers average less than $5 an hour), harsh and unpredictable weather, unsafe and unsanitary working conditions, huge competition and territorial conflicts, and the most difficult challenge: social exclusion. People are afraid of him and don’t want him near their homes or businesses.

Calgary Can was launched in 2012 to address these concerns and to recognize bottle pickers as a community and environmental asset. We actively engage with the bottle picking population to co-develop solutions to their daily challenges, while also helping other Calgarians understand their value and potential. Some of our activities include a Bottle Picker Advisory Committee, monthly pop up’s at the Uptown Bottle Depot where we offer bottle pickers safety gear and other comfort items in exchange for expert advice on program development, public advocacy related to the legitimization of informal work, and research and development toward a more permanent community offering – such as a mobile depot or a bottle-picker led cooperative.

Calgary Can wants to re-frame how most Calgarians view bottle pickers. 
We see them as hard working entrepreneurs, solving a social and environmental problem with big impacts by diverting thousands of tonnes of recyclables from the local waste system. How do you see them?