Children use markers nearly every day at school and many of the markers end up in the trash once they run out of ink. So, thanks to a Change.org petition bringing this dilemma to light, Crayola is introducting the ColorCycle recycling program.
The Change.org petition was set up by Land Wilson, a California teacher whose children were thinking about all the wasted plastic that goes into making markers that they just throw away. They came up with the idea to ask Crayola, one of the most well-known marker brands in the country, to create a recycling program. The cause was taken up by other schools from across the country, including Concord Elementary in Glen Mills, PA and The Park School in Brookline, MA. Eventually, over 90,000 people signed on.
In response, Crayola announced the ColorCylce program. K-12 schools in the continental U.S. and parts of Canada can set up a collection for markers, which they can then send to a facility using FedEx for free. There, Crayola will turn the plastic into clean-burning fuel.
Dixon Ticonderoga also heard about the petition and created its own recycling program called The Prang Power Recycling Program. Just like the Crayola program, once you have enough markers, you can send it off to their facility for recycling.
image: Crayola