In Seattle, reuse is the new recycle, and r.Cup is making it possible.<\/h1>","text_content2":"","text_buttons":null,"text_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"text_settings":{"style":"one-col","background":"bkgnd-white|light","align_text":"left","pair_with":[],"include_button":false},"text_columns":{"settings":{"wrap":"wrapped","configuration":"equal"},"backgrounds":{"col_one":"bkgnd-white|light","col_two":"bkgnd-white|light"},"alignment":{"col_one":"middle","col_two":"middle"}}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_textimage","textimage_image":{"image":413,"video_files":{"mp4":null,"webm":null},"style":"circle","anchor":"middle","caption":""},"textimage_lottie":{"background":null,"lottie":null,"style":"full"},"textimage_video":{"video":null,"style":"widescreen","caption":""},"textimage_slides":{"style":"rect","slides":null},"textimage_content":"The city of Seattle is a leader in environmental initiatives like recycling and composting, but now they\u2019re one of the first cities in America to begin implementing reuse solutions on a broad scale.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re increasingly focused on how we can actually prevent waste in the first place,\u201d says Ashima Sukhdev, a policy advisor with Seattle Public Utilities who helped launch Reuse Seattle<\/em>, a public\/private effort to build the first citywide reuse system for food and beverage containers.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe really want to encourage businesses within Seattle to move away from that single-use approach,\u201d she says.","textimage_buttons":null,"textimage_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"textimage_settings":{"style":"image","background":"bkgnd-white|light","orientation":"right","align_text":"left","include_button":false,"captions":false},"textimage_carousel":{"captions":false,"arrows":false},"textimage_columns":{"configuration":"two-thirds"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_pullquote","pullquote_quote":"\u201cYou might have cups that are being recycled or composted, but at the end of the day are only being used once.\u201d","pullquote_attribution":"Ashima Sukhdev, Climate Mitigation and Circular Economy Policy Advisor for Seattle Public Utilities","pullquote_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"pullquote_settings":{"background":"bkgnd-light|light"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_text","text_content":"

Why reuse?<\/h3>\r\n\u201cReuse beats single-use every time from an environmental standpoint,\u201d says Stephanie Thomas, an environmental consultant who\u2019s part of the Reuse Seattle team. \u201cEvery life cycle analysis report you look at is going to say that.\u201d\r\n\r\nUltimately, Seattle wants reusable cups and clamshells to become the norm, so no matter where you are\u2014a restaurant, a school, a workplace\u2014you\u2019ll receive your food and beverages in containers that are easily returned, cleaned, and reused.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe want reuse to be accessible and convenient and affordable for everyone,\u201d says Stephanie.\r\n\r\nTo build the systems and infrastructure required to accomplish this, the city\u2019s starting with \u201cclosed\u201d scenarios like live events and concerts, where billions of single-use cups are disposed of every year nationwide, and where it\u2019s relatively easy to collect used cups.\r\n

r.Cup\u2019s partnership is key.<\/h3>\r\n\u201cr.Cup\u2019s role has been instrumental in the Reuse Seattle program from the very beginning,\u201d says Stephanie.\r\n\r\n\u201cThey\u2019re known for their expertise in the music and entertainment industry. They\u2019d launched programs at venues all around the country. We really felt like having a service provider with that deep level of expertise was important,\u201d she says.\r\n\r\nIn order to be able to provide consistent, personalized service to Seattle\u2019s businesses, the r.Cup team built a local wash hub, where cups can be cleaned before being delivered again (and again and again) for reuse. The centrally located wash hub provides cleaning services to other Seattle reuse providers as well (and, importantly, it offers second-chance employment opportunities to local residents).\r\n\r\n\u201cA critical part of any reuse system is actually washing the item that needs to be reused,\u201d says Ashima. \u201cThe fact that there\u2019s this shared washing infrastructure available that\u2019s being developed by r.Cup is critical to that broader system and to scaling reuse in Seattle.\u201d","text_content2":"","text_buttons":null,"text_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"text_settings":{"style":"one-col","background":"bkgnd-white|light","align_text":"left","pair_with":[],"include_button":false},"text_columns":{"settings":{"wrap":"wrapped","configuration":"equal"},"backgrounds":{"col_one":"bkgnd-white|light","col_two":"bkgnd-white|light"},"alignment":{"col_one":"middle","col_two":"middle"}}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_pullquote","pullquote_quote":"\u201cHaving r.Cup decide to invest in the city of Seattle and open the city's first wash hub really helped take the whole initiative from visioning and dreaming to just make it a reality.\u201d","pullquote_attribution":"Stephanie Thomas, Vice President and Co-Owner at Cascadia Consulting Group","pullquote_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"pullquote_settings":{"background":"bkgnd-light|light"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_text","text_content":"

\u201cPeople are ready for it.\u201d<\/h3>\r\n\u201cI think the r.Cup system works so well in Seattle because they\u2019ve just done this,\u201d says Stephanie. \u201cThey\u2019ve tried and tested all of the different elements of the system and really have fine-tuned and found a process that just works.\u201d\r\n\r\nShe adds: \u201cAs we\u2019ve seen the reception that people have, it feels like something that should have happened years ago, but it\u2019s also something that we\u2019re seeing that people are just ready for. They\u2019re excited about it.\u201d","text_content2":"","text_buttons":null,"text_display":{"custom_class":"","block_name":"","display_block":true},"text_settings":{"style":"one-col","background":"bkgnd-white|light","align_text":"left","pair_with":[],"include_button":false},"text_columns":{"settings":{"wrap":"wrapped","configuration":"equal"},"backgrounds":{"col_one":"bkgnd-white|light","col_two":"bkgnd-white|light"},"alignment":{"col_one":"middle","col_two":"middle"}}},{"acf_fc_layout":"block_text","text_content":"

A better future is in your hands.<\/h2>\r\nReady to eliminate single-use waste at your event?","text_content2":"","text_buttons":[{"button":{"settings":{"type":"page","color":"primary"},"destination":{"text":"Let\u2019s Connect","url":"","page":26,"anchor":"","new_tab":false,"email":""}}}],"text_display":{"custom_class":"cta","block_name":"CTA","display_block":true},"text_settings":{"style":"one-col","background":"bkgnd-secondary|light","align_text":"center","pair_with":[],"include_button":true},"text_columns":{"settings":{"wrap":"wrapped","configuration":"equal"},"backgrounds":{"col_one":"bkgnd-white|light","col_two":"bkgnd-white|light"},"alignment":{"col_one":"middle","col_two":"middle"}}}]},"yoast_head":"\n