Origin of the recycle symbol

The original recycling symbol was designed in 1970 by Gary Anderson, a senior at the University of Southern California at Los Angeles.

It was submitted as part of a nationwide contest for high school and college students sponsored by the Container Corporation of America. The contest was a result of the continued growth of consumer awareness in response to the first Earth Day.

The recycling symbol consists of three-chasing-arrows in the shape of a triangle having rounded vertices. This represents a Mobius strip, discovered in 1858 by August Ferdinand Möbius (1790-1868), a German mathematician and astronomer. Each arrow twists and turns itself, and all three arrows chase each other. It is a consummate representation of recycling. The mobius loop itself was , and has been a mathematical marvel of simplicity, singularity, and continuity ever since.

Each of the three arrows represents a step in a three step process that forms a closed loop; the recycling loop. The first step is collection of materials to be recycled. The re-manufacturing process is the second arrow in the recycling symbol. The third step is the purchase and use of the products made from the recycled materials.

Just a little bit of history....