The Resource

May 29, 2019 10:07 AM

Last month, the Bureau of Solid Waste Management announced that four members of its recycling staff won a National Association of Government Communicators (NAGC) Blue Pencil and Gold Screen Award for their contributions to the creation of Baltimore County’s comedic, silent film-style recycling public service ad (PSA), “Tangled Up!”

Now members of the County’s recycling staff have won a 2019 Telly Award for their work on the PSA.

Communications Specialist Jeanette Garcia Polasky, Public Information Specialists Rashida White and Anne Marshall and interns Jahi Thomas and Natalie Adachi were among the 11 county employees who worked on the PSA that earned them a Silver Telly Award in the Social Video, General-Public Service and Activism category. Other 2019 Silver Award winners include Verizon Media, The Humane Society of the United States and the National School Boards Association.

Receiving over 12,000 entries from all 50 states and five continents, the Telly Awards honors excellence in video and television across all screens and is judged by more than 200 leaders from video platforms, television, streaming networks and production companies including Vice, Vimeo, Hearst Digital Media, BuzzFeed and A&E Networks.

Produced in-house, “Tangled Up!” shows why “tanglers” – items such as plastic bags and clothing – are not accepted by most recycling programs. The PSA has been shared on social media and blogs by more than 170 government, business, media and nonprofit organizations and industry professionals on four continents.

Watch and share Baltimore County’s award-winning recycling PSA on YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.

May 29, 2019 9:48 AM

By Richard Keller, Department of Public Works

Like many of you on Memorial Day, I found myself reflecting on the dedication and sacrifice of the men and women of our nation’s armed forces. I also got to thinking about the ways in which civilians have supported soldiers’ efforts over the years, and one thing is very clear: History shows that recycling can be a patriotic act.

During World War II, Japan invaded Southeast Asia and cut off supplies of tin and rubber. Therefore, in January 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the War Production Board, whose role included allocating resources such as steel, aluminum and rubber.

As a result, citizens participated in scrap drives to collect materials for the war effort. They recycled scrap metal (for bombs, ammunition, tanks, guns and battleships), rubber (for gas masks, life rafts, cars and bombers), paper, fats and tin. Promotion of this recycling effort included creative posters on recycling various scrap materials that emphasized the connection between recycling and the war effort. Most of these posters included proud and patriotic messaging, but others played into people’s fears and used offensive stereotypes to motivate their contributions to the effort.

While there are no figures available on the recycling percentages during the war, the recycling effort was national in publicity, but mobilized locally. 

And while no one wants a war, it would be great if we could again inspire Americans to recycle for the USA!

Looking to improve your recycling efforts? Read information about accepted recyclables on the County’s website.