Cleanaway

“I surprised myself.” That’s how Margaret describes 20 years in the waste industry.
And honestly, when she started at Citywide 20 years ago, she probably would have been just as surprised.

Margaret Maniatis didn’t set out to work in waste. She was drawn to a customer-focused role, joining Citywide as a Customer Liaise Executive with one key mission: save customers who wanted to cancel.

Fast forward 20 years and she’s seen it all. Different managers, organisational changes, new technology, changing waste systems, the Citywide transition to Cleanaway and plenty of learning along the way. She’s also gone from not knowing much about waste to knowing a lot about bins, trucks, runs, transfer stations and what makes the whole thing work.

Her secret to making it this far?
“Never stop learning and be open to growing, embrace change but never lose sight of your core values.”

And perhaps the most Margaret thing of all? She’s still looking ahead, hoping to see better waste systems in Australia.

So, Margaret, here’s to 20 years of saving customers, navigating change, learning new things and apparently surprising yourself along the way.

Read Margaret's full story: https://www.cleanaway.com.au/newsroom/from-citywide-to-cleanaway-margaret-s-20-year-journey

🎉 Congratulations to our 2026 MRL Community Benefit Fund recipients! We’re proud to announce the eight local organisations sharing $50,000 in community funding through Round 7 of the MRL Community Benefit Fund.

This year’s grants will support projects across Melbourne’s west, from community support and food relief to youth wellbeing, emergency services, sport, sustainability and community connection.
👏 Congratulations to:
• Caroline Chisholm Society | $8,000
• 1st Caroline Springs Scout Group | $2,000
• Lions Club of Taylors Lakes | $5,000
• Melton Fire Brigade - CFA | $8,000
• Orygen | $8,000
• SecondBite | $7,000
• Team Sports 4 All | $4,000
• Western Emergency Relief Network - WERN | $8,000
Thank you to these organisations for the work they do to strengthen our local communities.
Discover more about the MRL Community Benefit Fund and the incredible work these organisations are doing: https://www.cleanaway.com.au/cbf/mrl

46,800 Australians engaged in Cleanaway sustainability education and community programs in FY26. Through Cleanaway’s Centre for Sustainability (C4S), our teams work with businesses, councils, schools and communities to turn sustainability goals into practical behaviour change.

In FY26, our programs delivered:
• 1,411 education and engagement sessions across schools, communities and commercial customers.
• 24,043 session participants engaged through workshops, customer sessions, site visits and other education programs.
• 323 school education programs, reaching 12,835 students across primary and secondary schools.
• 78 community events, connecting sustainability education with local communities.
• More than 699 municipal engagement activities, supporting councils and communities with practical waste and recycling education.

The opportunity goes beyond education. C4S helps organisations turn knowledge into action by reducing contamination, improving resource recovery and influencing the everyday behaviours that shape waste outcomes.

Whether you’re a small business, a major organisation, a council or an education provider, C4S can help turn your sustainability goals into practical action.

Find out how Cleanaway’s sustainability education and engagement programs can work for your organisation. https://www.cleanaway.com.au/education

Your food scraps don’t have to go to waste. When collected through a Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) service or composted at home, they can be turned into something valuable.
The FOGO journey:
🏠 Food and garden scraps go into your FOGO bin (where available)
🚛 Material is collected and transported for processing
🌱 It is transformed into nutrient-rich compost
🌾 Compost supports healthier soils, agriculture and landscapes
Our 2026 Recycling Behaviours Report found 86% of Australians believe a national rollout of FOGO services will help reduce waste going to landfill.
No FOGO bin yet? Check what options are available in your area or explore home composting where suitable.
Small actions at home can help keep valuable resources in use.
Check out our easy-to-use guide for quick tips on what goes in FOGO then visit our A-Z recycling guide to learn the right way to bin common household materials. https://www.cleanaway.com.au/recycling-a-z

20 years. One depot. Never a dull moment. 💙
For Sandra Stradling, 20 years at Cleanaway has meant a lot of change, plenty of learning and, most importantly, a great team around her.

Today, Sandra supports payroll across four depots, council invoicing, suppliers, customers and plenty more, while continuing to adapt to new systems and technology.

Ask Sandra what has kept her here for two decades and her answer is simple: her team.

From birthday cakes to the annual Christmas BBQ, Sandra says it’s the people she works alongside who have made the journey so rewarding.

And when asked to describe her 20 years in three words, Sandra had the perfect answer: “Never a dull moment.”

Congratulations, Sandra, on an incredible 20-year milestone. Thank you for the commitment, care and consistency you bring to Cleanaway every day.

Read Sandra’s story here: https://www.cleanaway.com.au/newsroom/sandra-career-story

Sometimes, making a difference starts with simply helping people understand what they can do. For Jonathan Trevor, working at Cleanaway means getting out into the community, connecting with people and helping them make better choices about waste and recycling.

From speaking with school students to engaging with residents and community groups, Jonathan’s work is about more than waste. It’s about building understanding, sharing knowledge and helping people feel part of something positive. “I find it rewarding going into schools and presenting there,” he said. “You can see the enthusiasm students have for the environment and they are eager to play their part in helping make a sustainable future possible.”

Jonathan joined Cleanaway fresh out of university and has already made an impact across communities in Southeast Queensland. With the support of his colleagues and mentors, he’s continuing to grow his career while doing work that benefits the people around him.

It’s people like Jonathan who remind us that a career at Cleanaway can be about more than what you do. It can be about the difference you make.

Read Jonathan’s story in the latest edition of Inside Waste. Link in the comments.

Great to see this trial delivering such a practical approach to soft plastics recycling. 👏

By making the process simple for households and working within existing recycling infrastructure, the Indigo Shire community has shown what can be possible when convenience, collaboration and smarter resource recovery come together.

Proud to be part of the partnership with Indigo Shire Council and Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia.

An orange bag in your existing yellow-lid recycling bin. That's the entire ask behind Indigo Shire's soft plastics trial, and it's precisely why it worked.

After national soft plastics collection schemes collapsed, leaving households with nowhere to put bread bags, chip packets and cling wrap, Indigo Shire Council partnered with Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia and Cleanaway to trial a fix that didn't require a new bin, a new truck, or a special trip anywhere. Residents fill a distinctive orange bag with eligible soft plastics and drop it straight into their normal recycling bin. At Cleanaway's sorting facility, the bags are pulled out and sent for processing into a liquid oil base for remanufacturing.

The council's clearest finding: convenience beats good intentions every time. People will adopt a new recycling behaviour when it slots into a routine they already have, not when it demands a special effort.

No new infrastructure, no extra collection service, just a smarter use of what already exists on every street in Indigo Shire.

The X-factor is exactly that restraint: solving one of Australia's hardest waste streams by adding almost nothing to the system.

We're proud to announce that Cleanaway is an event Sponsor of this year's Run4Geelong. Presented by the Barwon Health Foundation, Run4Geelong brings the Geelong community together in support of better healthcare outcomes for the region. Every registration helps fund life-enhancing equipment, research and services for Barwon Health.

This partnership reflects our commitment to supporting the communities where we live and work. As one of Australia's leading waste management and resource recovery companies, we're excited to be part of an event that celebrates health, wellbeing and community spirit.

Whether you're taking on a short run or long run, cheering from the sidelines or volunteering on the day, we look forward to being part of the experience.

Registrations are now open. We hope you'll join us at Eastern Beach, Geelong on Sunday 8 November for what promises to be the biggest Run4Geelong yet. Find out more and register at https://www.barwonhealthfoundation.org.au/event/r4g/home

Pictured from left to right: Operations Manager Ash Warton and Driver Matt Barby. Picture thanks to Caitlin Locke Photography, who generously gives her time to capture content from the event.

Congratulations to Chris Lloyd, Cleanaway Branch Manager at our Logan site, who has been named the 2026 Lithium Battery Fire Hero of the Year at the Waste Recycling Industry Association QLD (WRIQ) Industry Awards.

Chris led the renewal of focus on Cleanaway’s hot load management program at Logan, strengthening a comprehensive approach to managing the growing risks associated with lithium batteries and other fire hazards in waste loads. The program brings together driver education, practical training, emergency drills and dedicated hot load containment areas, creating a clear and repeatable response process that helps keep our people, facilities and communities safe.

For Chris, the recognition is shared with the team behind the work, “I’d like to share the recognition with the Logan team, as their commitment and expertise have been essential to making the process such a success. The Logan team had already established a strong foundation and I’ve been proud to assist with that work and keep the focus on safety.”

A well-deserved recognition of Chris and the Logan team’s commitment to safety, expertise and continuous improvement. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/waste-recycling-industry-association-qld-inc_wriqindustryawards-wasterecyclingexcellence-activity-7502534902559670272-LkxM?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAY4ASgBY5JX3jIBcvk9q48BujoRopMaKd0

Your food scraps don’t have to go to waste. When collected through a Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) service or composted at home, they can be turned into something valuable.
The FOGO journey:
🏠 Food and garden scraps go into your FOGO bin (where available)
🚛 Material is collected and transported for processing
🌱 It is transformed into nutrient-rich compost
🌾 Compost supports healthier soils, agriculture and landscapes
Our 2026 Recycling Behaviours Report found 86% of Australians believe a national rollout of FOGO services will help reduce waste going to landfill.
No FOGO bin yet? Check what options are available in your area or explore home composting where suitable.
Small actions at home can help keep valuable resources in use.
Check out our easy-to-use guide for quick tips on what goes in FOGO then visit our A-Z recycling guide to learn the right way to bin common household materials.

How to FOGO Bin like a pro with our guide