My boss, Vice President of Sustainability at Rubicon David Rachelson, recently appeared on the Morgan Stanley Ideas Podcast, a show that brings the listener revealing stories about the world of business, finance, technology, and beyond.

In the episode, David sat down with Morgan Stanley Ideas Podcast host Ashley Milne-Tyte to talk about how plastics producers, consumers, haulers, and cities are tackling some of the inefficiencies inherit with the current recycling model. As Milne-Tyte noted during the episode, “Through recycling education, consulting, and communication, Rubicon is setting an example for what the shining future of plastics could look like.”

Here’s a teaser from the episode, which can be downloaded and listened to now on the Morgan Stanley Ideas Podcast website, or whenever you get your podcasts:

“Rubicon’s ultimate goal [is] to help each player make or save money by recycling. [Rubicon] connects plastics manufacturers with businesses that buy plastic products with recycling trucks that will take their plastic to the most cost-effective facility. [Rubicon] knows that recycling isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. When a manufacturer approaches Rubicon, the recycling solution might start with redesigning their product,” said Milne-Tyte during the episode.

“For cities, [the] Rubicon app helps recycling trucks plan efficient pickup routes with fewer stops. For a small business that only produces one or two small bags of recycling a day, recycling isn’t just a minor expense,” continued Milne-Tyte. “But Rubicon thought if you could take those one or two bags from many smaller businesses and put them together as one haul, small businesses might be able to divert those bags from the landfill at a reasonable cost.”

“It’s important for us to get the word out about the circular economy whenever we can, to advocate for the widespread adoption of circular practices,” said David Rachelson during a recent sit-down interview. “I am encouraged by the increased visibility the topic is receiving through platforms like Morgan Stanley’s Ideas Podcast, in which I recently had the pleasure of participating. It’s evidence that people outside of the traditional waste and recycling industry are interested in this topic, and what we at Rubicon have to say about it. As interest in the topic grows, we will continue to engage the public and private sectors and push toward a more circular economy.”

If you have a question about the circular economy and how your business can move toward a more sustainable model for dealing with waste and recycling, please drop me a line any time at nick.mcculloch@rubiconglobal.com.


Nick McCulloch is Senior Manager of Sustainability at Rubicon. To stay ahead of Rubicon’s announcements of new partnerships and collaborations around the world, be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, or contact us today.