ICC 2026 · The full report is live

Illinois is done debating whether to recycle. Here's what happened in the room.

Two days in Tinley Park moved past aspiration and into implementation: who pays for the system, who processes the material, who reports the data — and what happens when there's nowhere for a recovered ton to go. Our two-day report covers every session we recorded.

August 19–20, 2026 Tinley Park, Illinois Presented by The Battery Network

Read the ICC 2026 report See the photographs Dates to watch: grant awards, EPR changes, the needs assessment →

Four numbers from the report

97.5%Battery collection access reached statewide in July

120MPounds of food waste diverted by one South Side digester

435Local government survey responses, every county represented

30%Of the waste stream is covered packaging and paper

Hosted by the Illinois Recycling Foundation and SWANA Illinois.

Attendees of the 2026 Illinois Circularity Conference gathered for a group photograph in Tinley Park — ICC 2026 · Tinley Park

Inside the report

What ICC 2026 actually put on the record.

A keynote with stakes: U.S. EPA Region 5's Anne Vogel asked the room to reconsider how federal rules treat pyrolysis; Illinois EPA's James Jennings named where Illinois is choosing a different path.
Statewide data at last: first findings from the Illinois recycling needs assessment, including per-material targets and the $9-versus-$15 cost gap.
Implementation, honestly: the battery program's own first-year accounting, Chicago's 82 collection zones, and why collection is only the front half of circularity.

Read the full two-day report →

2Days in Tinley Park

20+Expert speakers

3Field-tour stops

1Full statewide report

Illinois' statewide recycling nonprofit · 501(c)(3)

Every material in Illinois deserves a next life.

The Illinois Recycling Foundation unites the people, programs, and policy building a circular economy across the state — from curbside carts to statewide legislation.

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Find a recycling location

Search drop-off sites by city or ZIP, browse material guidelines, and reach your local coordinator — anywhere in Illinois.

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The ICC 2026 report

Every session we recorded, from the federal-state keynote to the needs assessment, batteries, organics, reuse and producer responsibility.

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Join the statewide network

Membership connects you to the practitioners, agencies, and industry running recycling in Illinois.

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Flagship event · Presented by The Battery Network

The people shaping Illinois materials management came to Tinley Park. The work continues.

Municipalities, counties, haulers, processors, manufacturers, educators, agencies, nonprofits and sustainability leaders spent two days comparing what works and deciding what comes next.

Couldn't be there, or want the details you missed while you were in the other track? The full report covers both days, session by session, with the numbers as presented.

AUG 19–20, 2026 · WED–THU EVEN HOTEL & TINLEY PARK CONVENTION CENTER HOSTED WITH SWANA ILLINOIS

Read the full report Upcoming IRF events

AUGUST 19–20 Thank you, Illinois

ICC 2026 · In pictures

Two days, in photographs

Read the full report

Illinois EPA Director James Jennings speaking at the podium during ICC 2026 — Illinois EPA Director James Jennings, who told the room the policy differences with U.S. EPA headquarters are "well acknowledged" and in some cases "not productive."

Carter O'Brien and Juliet Mathey standing with Loop the recycling cart at ICC 2026 — Carter O'Brien and Juliet Mathey with Loop. In Waukegan, cart tagging cut contamination in inspected carts from roughly 60 percent to 25 percent in four weeks.

Susannah Sun of Green Era presenting at ICC 2026 — Susannah Sun of Green Era, whose South Side digester processed about 120 million pounds of food waste last year.

Five decorated Loop recycling carts on display at ICC 2026 — Five decorated Loop carts. Feed the Cart has reached roughly 2.6 million people through paid advertising.

Marta Keane at the podium during the ICC 2026 battery session — Marta Keane during the battery session. Illinois hit 97.5 percent collection accessibility in July, ahead of a target that does not arrive until 2028.

The producer responsibility panel at ICC 2026 — The closing producer responsibility plenary, where batteries, electronics and packaging landed in one conversation.

Attendees visiting The Battery Network booth in the ICC 2026 exhibit area — The Battery Network booth. More than 350 producers now fund the Illinois program.

WasteNot award winners at ICC 2026 — Award recognition at ICC 2026.

DJ Erica spinning records after dinner at ICC 2026 — DJ Erica, on vinyl. The connections a conference produces rarely happen during the last three minutes of Q&A.

What we do

One foundation. Three ways we move materials forward.

Convene

Bring the whole system to the table

From the statewide conference to regional workshops, we connect municipalities, haulers, processors, and policymakers who rarely share a room — but always share a material stream.

Educate

Help Illinoisans recycle right

We build programs, resources, and campaigns grounded in how local collection systems actually work, so residents and businesses can keep materials clean and moving.

Advocate

Strengthen policy and infrastructure

We work with agencies and legislators on the rules and investments a circular economy runs on — from battery stewardship to statewide recycling planning.

Latest from the Foundation

News & updates

Reporting, recaps and resources from the Illinois Recycling Foundation.

Attendees watching a speaker during a session at ICC 2026

Conference report

Illinois is done debating whether to recycle. ICC 2026 was about who pays.

A federal regulator asked an Illinois recycling audience to reconsider pyrolysis. The state's environmental director laid out where Illinois is choosing a different path. And somewhere between 11 batteries, 100 pounds of wasted bananas and a mothballed anaerobic digester, the conference stopped being about aspiration. Our full two-day report covers every recorded session.

Read the ICC 2026 report

Membership

Join the network running recycling in Illinois.

Membership connects you to practitioners, agencies, and industry across the state — and funds the Foundation's work year-round.

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Fuel the mission.

The IRF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Every gift supports education, advocacy, and cleaner material streams statewide.

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2026 Benefactors

Thank you to the partners who make this work possible