URBAN RECYCLERS

A NATIONwide Initiative

EMPOWERING URBAN RECYCLERS

Urban Recyclers Project is an island-wide initiative to serve and empower elderly Singaporeans who are commonly known as “cardboard collectors”. They collect a variety of items to trade in for cash to support their daily living needs.

With rising inflation, urban recyclers often struggle to earn a living. Border Mission empowers them by :

Giving them better tools

Educating them to sell a variety of items

Advocating higher prices for their items

Urban recyclers collect cardboard, paper-related products, aluminum cans, bottles, scrap metal, electrical items and clothes, etc. from the nearby HDB, markets, shops & offices before reselling them to traders, commonly known as “karang guni men” or recycling companies in their area. They often earn S$100-400 per month by selling recyclable items. 

Border Mission has about 1000 volunteers who:

  1. Map out and identify Urban Recyclers in their residential or work area ⁣and organise outreach walk to locate the elderly in the different parts of Singapore.
  2. Approach and interact with Urban Recyclers to better understand their lives and bridge the gap to address their needs.
  3. Coordinate and deliver brand new trolleys provided by Border Mission to these Urban Recyclers.

We highly respect the elderly who earn an honest living and strive to be self-sufficient. By befriending and empowering them with new trolleys, we hope they are able to collect more items with ease and to increase their income. 

PROJECT TIMELINE

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Represent this National Project. Be the one to give a brand new trolley to the cardboard collectors! Make a difference to someone’s life. We welcome anyone who wants to join.

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