Inspire Change in Your Community!

The Master Recycler Program bridges the gap between awareness and action, empowering people to consume sustainably at home, at work, and in their communities.

Our mission is simple: motivate people to make sustainable choices in their daily lives. We envision a world where materials are produced and used responsibly, conserving resources, protecting the environment, and supporting healthy, thriving communities.

If you’re ready to turn your environmental values into real-world impact, this program is for you!

Learn from the Experts

Each year, we welcome 3-5 cohorts of about 30 participants into a dynamic, seven-week training offered across the Portland metro region’s three counties. You’ll learn directly from innovative leaders and practitioners working on the front lines of sustainability.

Topics include:

• Climate change

• Repair and reuse

• Community sharing

• Toxics reduction

• Preventing food waste

• Recycling and compost processing

• Equity in the environmental movement

• Global recycling markets

You won’t just learn theory: you’ll gain practical knowledge you can use immediately.

Take Tours. Build Skills. Make Change.

See the system in action.

Participants tour recycling centers, compost facilities, and hazardous and municipal waste sites to better understand how materials move through our region. These behind-the-scenes experiences deepen your understanding and make you a more confident community resource.

You’ll also build practical outreach and behavior-change skills — learning how to meet people where they are, share information without judgment, and inspire action in ways that are realistic and lasting.

Join a Community of 2,000+ Volunteers!

When you become a Master Recycler, you join a network of more than 2,000 trained volunteers serving communities from Forest Grove to downtown Portland, from St. Johns to Canby and Sandy.

To earn your certification, you’ll:

• Attend all training sessions

• Complete 30 hours of volunteer service

Volunteer opportunities are flexible and meaningful. You might:

• Staff information booths on waste prevention, recycling, composting, and greener cleaners

• Support repair fairs or event recycling

• Help schools earn Green School certifications

• Join or support workplace or neighborhood green teams

• Launch a project of your own — with technical assistance from program staff

Community organizations can also request support from Master Recycler volunteers, expanding the reach and impact of this work across the region.

What We Stand For

Our work is guided by clear priorities and values:

Materials Management

We promote choices that reduce environmental and social impacts across a product’s full life cycle.

Sustainable Consumption

We support meeting today’s needs without compromising the health of future generations.

Behavior Change

We know change can be hard. By modeling sustainable practices and sharing our successes and struggles, we help others take action.

Equity

We believe everyone deserves access to the resources and opportunities needed to thrive. We actively work to reduce barriers and address inequities in environmental participation.

We are inclusive, collaborative, and future-focused. We share knowledge with curiosity and joy (never shame) and work alongside our communities to create lasting change.

Community-Designed Classes (Environmental Promoter Program)

One to two trainings each year are offered as Community-Designed classes, also known as the Environmental Promoter Program (EPP).

These classes are created by and for the participating community, centering culturally specific knowledge and lived experience. They are designed to reduce barriers for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), low-income, linguistically isolated, and multifamily communities.

Additional funding supports childcare, transportation, translation, interpretation, and food. Participants receive stipends for their outreach efforts, and many cohorts use a train-the-trainer model to build lasting leadership within the community.

The Master Recycler Program is currently at capacity for this program and not accepting any proposals for new classes.

Ready to Take Action?

The choices we make about materials and consumption shape our climate, our health, and our future. When neighbors learn from neighbors, sustainable living spreads.

If you’re ready to build skills, connect with others, and help create a more just and sustainable world, we invite you to join the next Master Recycler training.