recycle

Työ & Toiminta - Job and Action Association (J&AA)

Submitted by joonsbaek on Sun, 06/26/2011 - 8:41am

Countries

Finland

Tags

social enterprise, recycle, home appliances

Themes

social enterprises, job creation
Link: 
Työ & Toiminta
Stakeholders / Promoters: 
A social enterprise, minority groups in Finland (the unemployed, immigrants, rehabilitated, and disabled), RReuse (a network of social firms), consumers, Municipality of Helsinki
Background/ Context: 
The association was founded by a group of unemployed people in Vuosaari, a multicultural area of the city. At the time, unemployment associations were popular because of the economic recession, and provided somewhere for people (mainly men) to do social activities such as fishing. Honkanen was hired as the leader of one association in 1997/98, and he introduced recycling as a profitable activity. First of all, household goods were sold at a flea market, and then computers became more of the items being dismantled, reused and recycled. Opportunities with the new WEEE laws coming into effect, and collaborations with the Municipality of Helsinki, drove growth of the officially registered association. Companies in Finland must comply with the strict recycling laws, and this solution provides a way for them to recycle at low cost.
Case Description: 

사용자 삽입 이미지

(source: Lindsay Kenzig & Cindy Kohtala, 2005)

The main goal of the association is to provide work for unemployed, rehabilitated, immigrant and/ or disabled people. The second goal of the association is to ‘promote the policy of sustainable development by increasing the life cycle of consumer goods, by finding new ways of recycling, and by boosting the recycling activities in Helsinki area’, and it runs a second-hand store selling the goods. Other benefits: employment is kept local, workers have high motivation, and immigrants are able to adapt to Finnish working culture. 30% of workers find employment after working here. The scheme reduces a large amount of industrial and consumer waste, and provides household goods to the community and disadvantaged countries at reasonable prices. In the future, it hopes to collaborate even more with artists and designers in reusing material that cannot be recycled. 

A private limited company “social firm” (called Neo-Act Ltd) has recently been registered and activities will move from the non-profit association to the social firm. Its dual mission is to create jobs while making a profit according to legal social firm regulations. This association seems to be well organised and appropriate to its culture and society. The Job and Action Association cooperates with other Finnish social firms (supported by the national ‘Elware’ project) and is also part of the European-wide network, RReuse, a network of social firms operating in a similar way.

Benefits (Social, and environmental benefits): 

Society. There are many benefits for individuals working in this sustainable, enthusiastic place. From the consumer’s point of view, there is the benefit of recycling unwanted goods, and of buying products at reasonable prices. Putting immigrants to work (currently 35 nationalities) in society alongside Finns helps create a more multicultural and open-minded atmosphere, and allows them to develop skills and contacts not otherwise possible.

Environment. The environmental benefits are clear, with the repair/reuse of products, extending their lifespan, and material recycling. Between 25 and 40 tons of material comes through the operation per month, with about four tons of computers received per week from the government alone. J&A’s burning of plastic generates enough energy to heat 17 houses in Finland a year.