Recycling Society | Donate to Fund School Recycling & Books

About The Recycling Society

The Recycling Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to teaching children that they should never throw aluminum cans in the trash. Through our Million Cans Recycling Contest, students learn that aluminum is recyclable forever and that it has real value. Millions of cans have already been collected and recycled by students across the country. Together, we can make our planet a better place!

The Recycling Society connects elementary schools with scrapyards across the country to create sustainable recycling programs that make a difference in the lives of children and the communities they live in. Best of all, schools keep 100% of the money they earn from the cans they collect and recycle!

About the Million Cans Recycling Contest

We launched the Million Cans Recycling Contest in November 2023 with just 8 incredible schools—and they recycled 1.3 million aluminum cans! In 2024, the contest grew to 36 schools and together they recycled over 2.2 million cans.

Now in our 3rd year, the contest has officially become a core program of The Recycling Society, with 54 schools across 14+ states competing to recycle the most cans from October 1st to April 30th each year.

We focus on states without a deposit program and show students, teachers, families, and communities how fun, easy, and impactful recycling can be—thanks to the amazing support of our local scrapyard partners.

With the help of generous donors, we can continue expanding this program each year—bringing hands-on recycling education to the communities across the USA that need it most. 🌎💚🥫

States

Schools

Books Distributed

Total Cans Recycled

Our Winning Formula

Your donation helps us bring hands-on recycling education to more students across the USA. With your support, we can teach kids how easy it is to recycle at school with the help of their local metal recycling partners — and inspire the next generation of recycling superheroes! ♻️💚🦸‍♀️

Education

We teach students why recycling aluminum cans matters.

Schools

Convenience

Students and the community can easily drop off cans at school.

Scrapyards

Competition

Schools compete from October to April to recycle the most cans.

Incentives

Superheroes earn pizza and ice cream parties when they hit their goals.

Prizes

2025-2026 Current Count

Aluminum Cans

♻️ 54 schools across the USA are competing
from October 01 – April 30th to recycle the most aluminum cans!

The Million Cans Recycling Contest is a win-win: students help the planet 🌎 and schools keep 100% of the money from the cans they recycle.

Every can counts let’s cheer on our recycling superheroes! 🦸‍♀️🥳

📊 Leaderboard Notes

21 of our 54 amazing schools have had their cans picked up so far — many bins are still filling up! 🗑️♻️

Schools not yet listed are simply waiting on their first pickup… stay tuned! 🚛✨

Our leaderboard ranks schools based on the total number of aluminum cans recycled divided by the number of books we send over.

Each student in the selected grade receives their own copy of The Girl Who Recycled 1 Million Cans (in English or Spanish). They read the book, share the message, and help teach their entire school — and their families — why aluminum cans should never go in the trash. 🥫💚

We update the leaderboard every time we receive an official scale ticket from our metal recycling partners.

Thank you for your patience — and keep those cans coming, superheroes! 💪🦸‍♀️✨✨

MIllion Cans Recycling Contest Page

Learn More about the contest

View Schools and Recycling Partners on map

2025-2026
Million Cans Recycling
Contest Stats:

States

Schools

Books Distributed

What We Do

Hear from Our Recycling Superheroes!
Find out why the Million Cans Recycling Contest matters—from the kids who are making a real difference, one can at a time. ♻️🌟

Read Reviews

Learn more

Education + Convenience + Competition + Incentives = Higher Recycling Rates!

Our recycling superheroes are sparking big behavior changes everywhere they go! The U.S. recycles just 43% of aluminum cans…
Together, we can do better. Join the movement!

USA Recycling Rates By State

What Our Donors Are Saying

Here’s what our amazing donors are saying! 💚
We hope you’ll consider supporting the Recycling Society today so we can continue growing and reaching more students every year.

See our impact