Socially Responsible Enterprise Restores Health to Residents and City

United We Can, a Vancouver (BC) based non-profit, isn’t the stereotypical social responsibility enterprise. The organization has uniquely tied recycling collection (and the financial value of redemption) to helping to alleviate poverty and homelessness for its employees. How do they do it? United We Can offers responsible recycling collection services to local Vancouver businesses, then employs the less fortunate and disadvantaged in the city to collect the to-be-recycled materials for cash redemption that helps to underwrite the expenses of the organization and provide a means of healthy living to its employees. United We Can’s mission is to create healthy community support, income and job training for its employees.

The Third Green Wave

Healthy Living Marketing first learned about United We Can when we worked to support PepsiCo’s sponsorship of the Vancouver Pride Society’s 2009 Pride Parade. Throughout the entire 1.5 mile long parade route, United We Can personnel were stationed to collect and haul away thousands of empty beverage containers left by the reported 600,000 spectators. It was there that we observed the commitment and conviction of United We Can’s Executive Director, Brian Dodd. According to Dodd, “Green sustainable economic development is a path out of poverty. United We Can has been a pioneer in what is now being called the ‘Third Green Wave’, a combination of environmentalism and social equity. For fifteen years, United We Can has been an advocate for marginalized people and the environment, providing people with support, training, and “green collar jobs.” These jobs help lift people out of debilitating poverty and help create community opportunities in a place here in Vancouver commonly referred to as ‘Canada’s poorest postal code’.”

Recycling and Redemption Job Opportunities

Through its social enterprise activities, United We Can has created hundreds of employment opportunities for the less fortunate and disadvantaged by collecting recyclables at local business, apartment complexes, and of course, special events. The organization also offers commercial collection service by truck for large volume customers.

Sustaining Urban Environment

Given its mission to create sustaining urban enterprise that helps care for the environment, United We Can has expanded their services to now include –

- The Bintek Computer Lab that acquires salvaged computer parts and rebuilds system-ready computers that are then sold at an affordable price to low-income residents.

- BikeWorks, a “pedal-power” shop that provides service, sales and instruction to the public who needs bicycle repair at a nominal cost.

- Happy Plants, which sells rescued plants and support services to the Public.

- SOLE Food Inner City Urban Farm, that provides organically-grown food and sustenance to local residents and community kitchens. The farm provides training and employment opportunities to residents from Vancouver’s Downtown East Side to build, plant, maintain and harvest the farm. SOLE is expanding to a second site in the downtown Vancouver area shortly.

Healthy Living Marketing helps leading companies throughout North America shape, communicate and demonstrate their commitment to acting responsibly. For information on how brands can benefit from associations with socially responsible organizations like United We Can, please call (301) 378-0384.

Tags: community support, green living, healthy community, recycle and redemption, responsible recycling, social responsibility, socially responsible organizations, sustaining urban environment, united we can