Bag Up Manitoba

Please note this program is on hiatus indefinitely.

For information on recycling and donation options for any existing shopping bags you may have collected, please visit this link: https://simplyrecycle.ca/plastic-bags-2/bag-it-for...

Note:  this applies *only* to retail shopping bags.  There is currently NO municipal recycling available for items such as sandwich bags, bread bags, case wrap etc...

Please keep in mind, that Bag Up Manitoba was never intended to be a recycling program, rather an education program.  The message remains the same, please:

Reduce your use of single-use plastics.

Refuse single-use bags whenever possible.

Recycle your bags where available.

Reuse your bags multiple shopping trips, or for things like household waste, pet waste. etc.

MMSM Bag Up Manitoba, a program of Take Pride Winnipeg! Inc.

IN 2019, 168 SCHOOLS ACROSS MANITOBA PARTICIPATED. BENCHES WILL BE AWARDED IN THE COMING WEEKS.

LAST YEAR, 154 SCHOOLS ACROSS MANITOBA PARTICIPATED--THANK YOU! 

Since the fall of 2008, elementary schools in Manitoba have collected over TEN MILLION plastic bags for recycling into free Frisbees, birdhouses, planter boxes, bird feeders and benches for their schools. 

Inspire your students to do more to reduce their waste and consider reusing, recycling and remanufacturing options! This challenge is open to elementary schools across Manitoba.

The goal of this challenge is to teach students to do more to reduce their waste and consider reusing, recycling and remanufacturing options. Students are asked to collect as many plastic shopping bags as possible and bring them to their school for recycling.

We wish to emphasize that Bag Up Manitoba is a learning opportunity to tackle issues around plastic bag over-use and waste - it's *not* just a contest to win a bench! So, to level the playing field for all schools who join the challenge, all grand-prize benches will be awarded via random draw! We'll be sending out links throughout October to help teachers and students learn more about plastic bag waste reduction as well.

We'll still ask schools to count their bags so that we can measure the impact of the program. 

We'd love to see photos of your progress as well, so please send any photos (cleared for posting on social media) to carrie@takepride.mb.ca

How do Schools Get Involved in the Challenge?

MMSM Bag Up Manitoba is open to all elementary schools in Manitoba. We ask teachers and principals to register your schools.

  1. Sign up: contact carrie@takepride.mb.ca to register your school.
    Please include the following in your email:
    • Your name
    • Your school's name, phone number, and full physical address (to arrange for bag pick up)
    • Your school's current K-6 enrollment (older students are welcome to participate/assist, but since this program is geared towards elementary school students, we use only the K-6 number for tracking purposes, and only elementary schools are eligible for the draw to win a bench.  All schools joining will receive a participation prize). 
  2. Collect and count: Encourage all students and teachers to collect as many plastic shopping bags as possible between October 1, 2019 and October 31, 2019 then report your final count to carrie@takepride.mb.ca before Friday, November 8, 2019.  Be sure to keep a running count as the bags come into the school. Delays in reporting your final number will delay bag pick up for all schools in your area. We will begin collection the week of November 12, 2019.
  3. Package: All individual plastic bags should be packaged into larger bags ("green garbage bag" style) for pickup during November.
  4. Receive: Frisbees for your school - made from recycled plastic bags! In addition, 6 schools will be awarded (via random draws) a bench, also made from recycled plastic bags, courtesy of ReGen Composites!
  5. Await Pick Up: Gardewine Group Inc. will pick up bags from participating rural schools. Winnipeg schools will have their bags picked up by Waste Connections Canada.
  6. Visit: www.simplyrecycle.ca to see where you can recycle your bags throughout the year!
    Plastic items accepted:
    • grocery bags
    • retail bags
    • newspaper sleeves
    • produce bags
    • bread bags
    • ice bags
    • bubble wrap
    • case over wrap
    • pellet bags
    • salt bags
    • dry cleaning bags
    • re-sealable food bags
    • cereal bags

Full information will be sent out to schools across Manitoba in September. If you have any questions please feel free to contact Carrie by email carrie@takepride.mb.ca or by phone (204) 956-7590 ext. 203

How can the General Public Get Involved?

Take Pride Winnipeg! encourages everyone to reduce their contribution to the landfill. As schools register for the challenge, they may decide to accept plastic bags from the public. Please contact the principal and take your bags to a local school.

Take Pride Winnipeg! is proud to partner with Multi-Material Stewardship Manitoba (MMSM) to bring you this free and fun program. Take Pride Winnipeg! also acknowledges the support of Progressive Waste Solutions, Gardewine Group Inc., Trex and Canada Safeway in helping MMSM Bag Up Manitoba be a great success.

Take Pride Winnipeg! is the first organization in Canada to develop educational programming on the responsible use and re-use of plastic shopping bags, targeted to children. The book, Timmy the Tumble Bag, and the Plastic Bag Roundup Challenge are revolutionary programs.

How Timmy Came to Life

Plastic shopping bags themselves are not a problem; the problem arises when people who use them toss them away as litter or add them to a landfill instead of reusing or recycling. There had to be a way to educate the public about their responsibility and encourage a 3 “R’s” approach to plastic shopping bags so that they are used only when necessary, reused many times, and at the end of their useful life, recycled. So, the concept of Timmy the Tumble Bag was born! Timmy would become the key character in an educational reader targeted to elementary students in Winnipeg’s school system. The goal is to teach children at a young age about responsible use and the 3 “R’s” of plastic shopping bags and make it fun by issuing a reuse and recycling challenge in their school.

The official launch of Timmy the Tumble Bag and the Plastic Bag Roundup Challenge was held Monday, October 27, 2008, at Indigo Books & Music, 1590 Kenaston Boulevard, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Timmy the Tumble Bag - the book

Timmy the Tumble Bag follows the life of Timmy as a plastic shopping bag, from his original home in a store as a carry bag to newfound freedom happily tumbling around as a piece of litter until he is befriended by a boy who arranges for Timmy to be recycled and remanufactured into a Frisbee, to Timmy’s great delight.

The goal of the book is to encourage responsible use of products, including plastic shopping bags, and to teach students about another R - remanufacturing. Following the story are facts about plastic shopping bags, classroom activities and suggestions for discussions.

The book will be available for sale at the Take Pride Winnipeg! office. All proceeds from the sale of the book will benefit Take Pride Winnipeg! education programming.

Take Pride Winnipeg! plans to continue the sales of Timmy the Tumble Bag book and have secured funding if a second printing is required. If individuals, schools or other communities across Canada are interested in purchasing copies of Timmy the Tumble Bag, please contact Carrie Lund: carrie@takepride.mb.ca