Kristen Weeks and Carley Reid, chemistry graduate students at Florida State University, have taken their passion for sustainability beyond the lab by initiating a glove recycling project. The pair has managed to turn their concern for plastic waste into a practical and impactful endeavor that has caught the attention of their department and beyond.
The inspiration for the glove recycling project was borne out of Reid’s interest in sustainability, which was recognized by chemistry Professor Brian Miller. Reid teamed up with Weeks, who had previous experience with a glove recycling program at the College of Charleston in South Carolina during her undergraduate studies. Their initial project involved assessing single-use plastics within their department. Their work revealed that gloves were the largest contributors to plastic waste.
Their solution involved partnering with TerraCycle, a company that specializes in recycling materials that are difficult to recycle conventionally. Through the FSU Sustainable Campus Green Fund Grant, they secured $5,000 in seed money to kickstart their initiative. The funding enabled them to purchase specially designed collection boxes for communal areas in their research buildings. Collecting gloves from these designated drop-off points, Weeks and Reid recycled 193 pounds of gloves, equivalent to nearly 28,000 pairs, in just over a year.