Alec Cooley has been involved in the recycling and waste reduction field for over 25 years. He got his start as a student recycling coordinator at Humboldt State University in Northern California, and later worked for several years as a collections and operations manager for the Arcata Community Recycling Center. Cooley returned to HSU in 1997, serving as the university’s Solid Waste Reduction Manager for 9 years. He next worked for the National Recycling Coalition as a program manager for three years, before joining the national office of Keep America Beautiful in 2009. Through his time with the National Recycling Coalition and Keep America Beautiful, Cooley managed the national RecycleMania competition as well as technical programs for the College and University Recycling Council (CURC). During his 9 years with Keep America Beautiful, Cooley also oversaw the organization’s public space recycling initiatives including grant programs and research agenda. In August 2018, Alec joined the Canadian company, Busch Systems. In his role as Senior Advisor, Alec works provides consulting services and develops technical resources to improve recycling and waste reduction programs.
Alec has previously served as a board member of both the California Resource Recovery Association and Carolina Recycling Association. He is a current board member of the National Recycling Coalition.