Thanks to the internet, the pandemic hasn’t broken our spirit

By Martijn Reintjes, Chief Editor, Recycling International

Webinars have become immensely popular during the coronavirus crisis and it is no surprise that demand for platforms such as Gotowebinar or Gotomeeting is soaring. With continuing lockdowns and travel restrictions worldwide, recycling technology providers and scrap industry bodies are also resorting to such online tools to showcase their latest innovations, share views and provide business opportunities.

After all, the show must go on…

The US Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) and the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) kicked off with online events in April and May to replace cancelled conferences planned for Las Vegas and Istanbul. Others soon followed and now barely a week goes by without at least one ‘virtual’ recycling event.

At the time of writing, the Material Recycling Association of India (MRAI) is holding a webinar to spotlight the current state of the country’s recycling sector, with some excellent and inspiring speakers pulling in more than 500 viewers from around the globe.

‘It’s been a great success and it’s good to see that Covid-19 didn’t dampen the spirits of the recycling industry,’ the Bureau of Middle East Recycling (BMR) says about its first-ever online conference held in early July. Recyclers from Europe, North America and Asia discussed challenges faced by the global scrap sector during the pandemic.

BMR claims to have brought together 1 100 participants over three days of its online networking. The conference was hosted by Susie Burrage, president of the UK metal recycling body BMRA, Nasser Aboura and Mir Mujtaba, respectively the president and vice president of BMR.

The trade body says it intends to run more web events in the near future. I am quite sure it will not be the only one.