Recycle Hawaiʻi has long understood that real change requires more than programs — it requires policy. From shaping Integrated Solid Waste Management Plans on Hawaiʻi Island to representing the Pacific at international plastic treaty negotiations, Recycle Hawaiʻi has been a consistent voice for systemic transformation.
For decades, Recycle Hawaiʻi has participated in the Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM) planning processes at both the state and county level — the legally required planning framework under Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes Chapter 342G that guides how each county manages, reduces, and diverts its waste streams. These planning processes shape everything from landfill priorities and recycling infrastructure to Zero Waste goals and organic waste diversion timelines. Recycle Hawaiʻi has consistently engaged in these processes to ensure that community voices and Zero Waste principles are reflected in the plans that drive public investment and policy.
At the local level, Recycle Hawaiʻi has provided testimony and advocacy that contributed to landmark legislation on Hawaiʻi Island, including the 2014 Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance, the 2017 Polystyrene Foam Food Container Ordinance, and the landmark 2025 passage of Bill 83 banning single-use plastic foodware island-wide.
In 2023, Recycle Hawaiʻi took its advocacy to the global stage. Executive Director Kristine Kubat was invited by the U.S. State Department to attend the second meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-2) in Paris, France, as a representative of a recognized civil society unit under the United Nations Department of Global Communications. INC-2 was a pivotal session in the multi-year negotiations toward a first-of-its-kind legally binding global plastics treaty — a process that began with 175 nations agreeing to “end plastic pollution” at the UN Environment Assembly in March 2022.
- Participated in state and county Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM) planning processes, helping shape Hawaiʻi’s waste management priorities for decades
- Provided public testimony and advocacy contributing to landmark local legislation: the 2014 Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance, 2017 Polystyrene Foam Ordinance, and Bill 83 (2025)
- Executive Director Kristine Kubat attended INC-2 in Paris (May 2023) as a U.S. State Department-invited civil society representative in the UN global plastics treaty negotiations
- Represented the Pacific perspective at international negotiations where 175 nations agreed to pursue a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution
- Engaged in coalition building with local, state, and international partners to advance Zero Waste and plastic reduction policy
Recycle Hawaiʻi’s advocacy legacy demonstrates that a community-based nonprofit on a small island can have impact far beyond its geography. By consistently showing up — in county council chambers, in state planning rooms, and in international negotiating halls — we have helped shape the waste and materials policies that affect every resident of Hawaiʻi Island, and contributed to the global conversation about ending plastic pollution once and for all. That work continues today.
Support Recycle Hawaiʻi’s advocacy work for Zero Waste policy in Hawaiʻi and beyond.
