b"Recycling passion pays off I made a career out of recycling goods and Im glad Ive been ableto continue that in my volunteering role.NoelBefore Noel started volunteering with the OpGoing greenShop team in Bendigo, removing rubbish and unsellable goods dumped outside the shopsOur environmental impact as an organisation is was costing Uniting over $7000 a year. Todayimportant. We understand the disproportionate the bill for items that can be recycled is $0.effects climate change and extreme weather Noels passion for the environment has comehave on vulnerable communities, so we need to from over 2 decades of working in the recyclingdo our part to drive real change. industry. He takes unsellable items from theIn December 2019, we approved our first shop to repurpose, restore or on-sell as scrapEnvironmental Sustainability Strategy (the metal, to ensure they dont end up in landfill.Green Strategy). This sets out how we will try In the short time he has been volunteeringto improve our environmental performance with the Op Shop team in Bendigo, Noel hasacross 4 priority areas:educated teams of volunteers on recycling Reducing our carbon footprintpractices, significantly reducing the amount Decreasing waste to landfillof money spent on rubbish removal, says Op Increasing employee engagement Shop Coordinator, Mary-Anne Toner.Growing our partnerships for greater impact.Not only has Noel saved Uniting thousands ofThe strategy is driving the activities of key dollars, hes turned what used to be rubbishteams within the organisation. We swapped into profit, meaning more funds can beover our electricity supply to 100% renewable, provided to people who are experiencing crisishave started exploring solar opportunities at in the Bendigo region. our sites and have established a network of I enjoy (recycling) and its good to know thegreen champions across the organisation.broader community benefits from the savings,SO This work reflects our commitment to being says Noel. And at almost 80 years old, hea sustainable organisation known for its strong shows no signs of slowing down, visiting the Opidentity, culture, capability and systems. Shops at least 4 times a week and cleaning up anything he believes can be recycled.Noel's recycling knowledge has been invaluable to Uniting. Uniting Vic.Tas Annual Report 2019-2020 45"