Future Business Leaders of America has broadened their business-centric focus to include greener pursuits.  Community service project leaders Shelby Jennett and Abby Shamelashvili held a recycling drive on Dec. 16, 2017 to decrease the effects of plastic pollution in the Bay.

“We’re trying to spread more awareness throughout our community,” Jennett said. “We wanted to provide a space where people could recycle their items such as e-waste or plastic bottles.”

The drive was incredibly successful, with over 118 pounds of recycled items collected at a local Sports Basement. Most of the items donated were categorized as electronic waste, which includes old smartphones, computers and keyboards, Shamelashvili said.

Since most recycling centers do not accept e-waste, Jennett and Shamelashvili transported the items to rePlanet, a center that collects them.

“Prior to the drive, we had a door to door marketing event,” Shamelashvili said. “We went to over 150 houses and passed out flyers, and we were really surprised to see how many people were excited about the drive.”

FBLA’s strong marketing campaigns promote environmentally-conscious living and continue to extend their impact in the community.

“We’re seeing if we can volunteer at some animal shelters, or maybe a wildlife center to basically reach out and help all the aspects of plastic pollution,” Shamelashvili said.

The committee will also partner with GreenOps in the future, and they will participate in Green Week, which takes place later in the year.

“In a nutshell there would be two parts of our project,” Jennett said, “One which is spreading awareness about plastic pollution and the second which is volunteering within the community in order to make an actual impact.”

FBLA has achieved these goals and more through effective advertising strategies and partnerships with other HHS clubs.

“We thought we should target [the plastic pollution problem] because it would make a big difference in our community,” Shamelashvili said.