What's the Secret to Getting People to Be Green? Reward Them

The green movement is a tricky thing. Most of us realize that climate change is happening--the world of the future will be fundamentally different because of what's happening today, and we all need to do something about it. Together.

The problem is sometimes thinking about doing something doesn't always translate into actually doing something. What can buying a pair of vintage jeans or reusing aluminum foil have any impact on something as big and scary as global warming? This is a problem that spans the spectrum of people too. Even the most vocal of treehuggers sometimes find it difficult to do something as seemingly simple and intuitive as recycling, and if that's the case, what does that say about the average person?

It's hard to guilt people into it. They'll end up just resenting the entire issue. It's even hard to appeal to people's emotions... there are only so many pictures you can show someone of cute, cuddly polar bears somewhere before they start getting numb to it. This is where people like RecycleBank come in. RecycleBank was started by two high school friends who have figured out how to get people to take good, green actions: reward them.

RecycleBank rewards people by giving them points based on how much they recycle. They can then redeem their points at a variety of stores and outlets. Or, if they don't want points, people can donate their credit to charitable causes, like the Green Schools program.

Today, RecycleBank serves over one million people across 20 states in the United States, and that number continues to grow every week. They are already operating in the UK, the program will launch service in Europe this summer, and they have received prestigious awards from the U.N, amongst others. To date, RecycleBank members have collectively saved over 4.4 million trees and over 295 million gallons of gas through weekly recycling efforts. Possibly one of the best parts of the deal, though, is over 40-50% of all rewards redeemed are at local businesses.

This is all to say that their model works. People end up recycling more if they get rewarded for doing it, even if the reward is small.

It does raise the question if people are recycling because they want to help the environment (and they just need a little push), or if their motives are purely to get rewards at local grocery stores, music shops, or even major e-commerce sites. But, ultimately, does it matter?

Who's to say that if people weren't being rewarded, if those 4.4 million trees would have been conserved or the 295 million gallons of gas would have been saved? A study last year found that only 38% percent of people recycle old cell phones, but 98% of people would be willing to do so... if they just got a little push with cash, store credit, or tax breaks.

"There are so many environmental initiatives out there that are important," says Gonen. "Solar, wind, biofuels. But these are all huge, capital-intensive projects. Most of us can't do that, but everyone can recycle."

Readers: What do you think is the best way of incentivizing good green actions like recycling or reuse? Are there any other cool companies out there that you know that does what RecycleBank does?

[b]Ashwin Seshagiri is a member of the eBay Green Team, which celebrates the positive green action that happen on and because of eBay every day, like giving new uses to old products across the globe. To find out more, visit ebay.com/greenteam.