Glass Half Full

Our Story

Like most good things, it started with a bottle of wine…

As seniors at Tulane University, we were disappointed and frustrated with the lack of glass recycling in New Orleans. One night, over a bottle of wine that we knew would end up at the dump unless we did something about it, we hatched a plan to combat this problem. Specifically, we wanted a system that was transparent, accessible, and most importantly, actually recycled glass into something functional. Instead of trying to take on the ultimately unrealistic task of reforming the current system, we decided to look at the glass half full by implementing our own grassroots glass recycling program.

We launched Glass Half Full in a backyard…

where we began collecting and hand-crushing our friends’ glass with no real expectation for what this project could become. As word spread, participation and support grew, and soon we obtained the resources to move to an uptown location on Joliet St. After quickly running out of storage space (a good problem to have, in our opinion!), our supporters rallied to help us expand into a new processing facility in New Orleans East, where we would have the ability to scale up our operations and accept more glass. From there, it was history– we are are backed by a growing team of staff, volunteers, and community members who pitch in daily to divert tens of thousands of pounds of glass from NOLA’s landfills every single week.

We are beyond grateful…

to the New Orleans community for the way it has wholeheartedly embraced this project, enabling it to grow more than we could have possibly imagined in just a short period of time. With your support, we hope to continue expanding our initiative to better meet our state’s vast glass recycling demands, and to use the sand we produce to benefit our environment and community.

Our Mission & Vision

Converting glass into sand & glass cullet

Our recycling process involves diverting used glass products from landfills and sorting, sifting, and ultimately converting them into sand products ranging from super soft, beach-like sand to glass gravel. The final products are used for coastal restoration projects, disaster relief efforts, eco-construction, new glass products, and so much more. The applications for sand are truly endless.