The proper disposal and recycling of waste materials such as plastic, paper, glass and so forth covers more than just the collection of waste, but also waste awareness training, auditing, waste characteristics and analysis, reporting and the logistics of transporting waste from its source to recycling centers. One startup from Myanmar, RecyGlo, is doing its part by offering environmentally impactful recycling solutions in Southeast Asia through its waste management analytics platform. According to the startup, its waste management services platform is able to attain a remarkable recycling rate that is above 95%, thus contributing much to the cleanliness and recycling efforts of the local communities of Malaysia and Myanmar that it currently serves.
The waste management startup, which was founded in 2017, was established with a clear purpose in mind: the introduction of a proper and efficient waste management system in the region of Southeast Asia for advocating the development and innovation of a recycling and waste management culture. Ko Okka Phyo Maung, RecyGlo’s co-founder, said that in order to encourage more widespread adoption of proper recycling and waste management habits, the startup uses a holistic approach that lessens managerial costs while benefiting organizations and companies that engage their services by providing logistics and transportation, waste auditing, waste segregation and awareness training, analysis and reporting, certification and more. The company is able to handle and process a wide variety of waste materials in a non-hazardous manner, including glass, plastics, metal, paper, organic waste, electronic waste such as discarded mobile phones and printers, and hazardous waste such as paint, solvents and automotive wastes.
According to Ko Okka, RecyGlo’s primary motivation is in the building and development of a closed holistic waste management system that eschews the need for unsustainable landfills or pollution-causing waste incineration methods that bring harm to the environment. Ko Okka elaborated further on their waste management process by explaining that, once the startup has acquired a customer, they will provide and set up color-coded segregation bins that denote which waste materials go into which bin, and then follow up with waste awareness and segregation training to spread knowledge of proper waste management. The company schedules and collects their customers’ waste and then transports it to the proper facilities, and then provides reports for waste data and allows them to track waste traceability.
Ko Okka did note that initially people were sceptical of a waste management approach that requires them to pay for the recycling and disposal of their waste, but RecyGlo’s customer base are businesses and organizations that share the same beliefs and values as them: commitment to keeping the world’s environment safe and pristine. Now, the startup counts numerous local communities, companies and organizations as their clients, some of which include Yangon Academy International School, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KBZ Bank, UNESCO, Phandeeyar and Sampan Travel. Ko Okka added that the startup has managed to impact the lives of more than 10,000 people in Southeast Asia, and have managed more than 100 tons of waste to date.
RecyGlo was admitted into Norway’s Katapult Ocean Accelerator program earlier this year and was the beneficiary of a US$150,000 funding as a participant of the accelerator. The startup also won the prestigious Seedstars Asia Competition that was held in Cambodia recently, and will represent Myanmar for the global stage of the competition which will be held in Switzerland next year.
The waste management service startup, RecyGlo, intends to expand into new countries in the region such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia, to bring its environmentally friendly and holistic waste management solutions approach to these countries with an eye on keeping these countries’ environments pristine and clean. The startup aims to continue making a difference in the lives of the people and communities that they serve and to become one of the region’s eminent forces in providing proper waste management and recycling services.
