DS Smith, Indianapolis Public Schools Offer Free, Recyclable Boxes for Students Moving to College in ‘Pack to School’ Campaign

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Indiana students heading to college can get free, recyclable moving boxes, thanks to a “Pack to School” campaign announced by DS Smith, a leading paper and corrugated packaging supplier, and Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS). DS Smith said the box giveaways, manufactured at its central Indiana plant in Lebanon, are part of its global efforts to raise awareness on the need to protect the environment, encourage recycling and support a circular economy that aims to reduce and design out waste.

DS Smith reached out to IPS, the state’s largest school district, after the company’s recent nationwide survey found Baby Boomers are those most motivated to recycle leftover boxes while young people – Millennials and Gen Z – are the least interested in doing so.

“With our study finding Baby Boomers take recycling more seriously than younger generations, we wanted to send a reminder to students across Indiana and the country on the importance of recycling and implementing sustainable practices into everyday life,” said David McCracken, business unit general manager, DS Smith.
“Being green starts at home, and we want each student to take that approach to their home away from home this fall,” McCracken said.

Many of the state’s top universities, including Notre Dame, Purdue, Indiana University, Ball State, Valparaiso and DePauw, promote their recycling programs, from designated containers in dorms to larger trash and recycling sites on campus.
With waves of students preparing for college, those and other sustainable practices can make a lasting difference, said DS Smith and the school district.

What kind of difference? If each of Indiana University’s undergraduate students needed six large boxes in their move and didn’t recycle them, the unfolded cardboard would cover the Indiana Hoosiers Memorial Stadium football field 70 times over.

The free cardboard moving boxes, along with a recycling tips sheet from DS Smith, will be available starting Thursday at four IPS high schools:
• Arsenal Tech High School
• Crispus Attucks High School
• George Washington High School
• Shortridge High School
IPS said students should contact their Future Center Resource Associate to schedule a pickup time.

DS Smith’s high-tech manufacturing plant formally opened in January 2020 in Lebanon, keeping pace with increasing demands by consumers and retailers for fully recyclable boxes and “fit-to-product” packaging that reduces costs and waste.
The facility can produce about 300,000 boxes an hour and 2 billion square feet of recyclable packaging a year.