Characters Depict a Non-Recycling Lifestyle

Atlanta resident Tommy Krenshaw finds himself in the limelight as the star of Georgia’s new recycling education campaign launched Monday, featured at YouGottaBeKidding.org. Tommy is a 31-year-old currently unemployed factory maintenance custodian and a self-proclaimed avid “non recycler.”

Tommy isn’t worried about the environmental effects of his actions (or should we say inaction?). He simply plans to move to a new planet when this one will no longer support our habits.

Okay, so Tommy is actually a fictional character. He is meant to represent the people who, every day, make choices not to recycle by simply passing the recycling bin or choosing not to utilize their municipal recycling programs.

“Every time someone bypasses a recycling bin or chooses to throw a can away, they’re effectively saying, ‘I don’t recycle!’” says Randy Hartmann of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA), who created the recycling campaign. “They’re wearing their apathy on their sleeve. What we’re saying is that these excuses won’t work anymore.”

The Truth Behind the Lens

The need for the recycling education campaign stemmed from a Solid Waste Characterization Study that revealed nearly 40 percent of what Georgians dispose of is actually recyclable. A recent DCA study also showed that 45 percent of Georgians do not regularly recycle.

Tommy is not the only fictional recycling offender in the campaign. He is joined by others, including Maria Inex-Phillips, a 31-year-old pathologist who believes recycling “seems really involved” and Ronald T. W. King, a 28-year-old shift supervisor who believes his recycling efforts would “just be a drop in the ocean.” Each non-recycler has his or her own Web page and wears a t-shirt stating, “I don’t recycle.”

“The absurd nature of what these characters say contrasts sharply with the many rational reasons to recycle,” states Hartmann. “Because, unlike what Tommy may say, we can’t just find somewhere else to live when we have used up our natural resources. People interacting with the campaign will come away thinking that, in light of these preposterous alternatives, recycling is a pretty simple proposition.”

The campaign will target all non-recyclers, with a focus on 25- to 34-year-olds, as research reveals this group is the least likely to recycle but also the easiest to motivate. Watch for more characters to appear in the coming months on billboards, restaurant coasters, radio PSAs and more locations around Georgia- and don’t be surprised if you see a life-size Tommy cardboard cutout pop up near you as the characters will make conspicuous appearances throughout Georgia.