The University of Sydney is committed to addressing some of the world’s most complex and pressing challenges by continuously improving sustainability performance across all aspects of its operations — from leading research and education through to everyday campus activities.

As part of this broader approach, the university engaged Source Separation Systems to increase participation in resource recovery and make it easier for students and staff to engage in sustainable waste practices.

The outcome of this project is a customised Recycling Wall Hub, now rolled out across key buildings on campus.

University environments bring together highly engaged users with strong sustainability ambitions, creating an opportunity to divert materials that are not typically captured through standard waste systems.

Students, staff and visitors alike are encouraged to deposit smaller, non-traditional waste items. Once separated into individual streams, these materials can be collected through specialised recycling programs, where valuable resources can be recovered that would otherwise be lost through landfill or contamination in mixed recycling.

Leveraging Source Separation Systems’ in-house design and manufacturing capability, the Recycling Wall Hub can be configured to suit site-specific requirements. As a wall-integrated system, it allows multiple streams to be collected within a compact footprint, incorporating 25L and 60L internal collection bins.

Partnering with the university sustainability team, these units were designed to collect ‘hard-to-recycle’ items such as batteries, writing instruments, blister packs, toner and ink cartridges, and skincare packaging. Clear colour differentiation and highly visual signage promote the system and guide users to the correct stream. These materials are typically excluded from traditional recycling systems, making dedicated infrastructure essential to capture them effectively and support improved recovery outcomes.

The flexibility of the Recycling Wall Hub allows it to respond to different environments— with blister packs and x-rays in clinics, glasses and contact lenses in optometrists, and soccer boots and shin pads in sporting facilities. Items collected can be directed to specialised recycling programs or, in some cases, reused or donated.

We are proud to partner with the University of Sydney on this project, supporting their ambitious sustainability objectives and contributing to improved resource recovery outcomes across campus.

You can read more about the team’s project here.