Indianapolis is best known for races, cars, and now the largest display of recycled materials during the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit.
“NCSL is where ISRI engages with state policymakers and elected officials,” said ISRI Chair Brian Henesey. “This year’s expanded ISRI booth provided industry volunteers with a greater opportunity to engage and promote the importance of the recycled materials industry.”
An annual event, NCSL’s Legislative Summit brings together state legislators from across the U.S. for sessions covering an array of topics, as well as a vibrant exhibit hall. The event presents ISRI with a unique opportunity to bring the recycled materials industry to the state legislators, allowing members to involve them in proactive discussions regarding issues of importance to their operations at the state and local levels.
“NCSL is a great platform for members to engage several of their state legislators in one place and over a couple of days. Without it this would not be possible,” said Henesey.
This year’s recycled materials display showcased how recycled materials touch every part of our lives. Members provided everything from a bench made of recycled tires, to cars waiting to be shredded, bales of aluminum cans, a bicycle, electric scooter, refrigerator, washing machine, pizza boxes and beyond. Having these items allowed ISRI members to walk legislators through the process of one item being in its end-of-life form to the pieces of metal, paper and plastic it becomes and its new beginnings as another product.
An additional component of ISRI’s participation at the NCSL Legislative Summit this year was a presentation in the event’s learning hub. Henesey and Emily Ham, from ISRI member company International Paper, spoke to attendees and answered questions regarding the significance of recycled materials as well as the importance of electric vehicle and lithium-ion battery safety.
“ISRI invests a lot of time and effort in planning its involvement with NCSL. This includes organizing logistics and labor for setting up and dismantling the display booth and volunteers’ time engaging with our elected officials. The Indiana chapter did a great job this year organizing this effort. They knocked it out of the park,” said Henesey.
