Opal Recycling’s long-standing partnership with Endeavour Industries is built around that idea. Together, we’ve created a practical model that connects recycling with employment opportunities for people living with disabilities across the Goulburn region.

Endeavour Industries is a not-for-profit organisation that provides supported employment through structured, skills-based work programs. At its Resource Recovery Centre in Goulburn, people are involved in employment that is tangible and valued, contributing to day-to-day operations, while developing skills and capability. That work starts with sorting used cardboard that arrives on-site, from major retailers and supermarkets.

The team at Endeavour Industries inspect and separate to remove contamination, ensuring only clean, high-quality cardboard continues through the recycling process. Opal Recycling supports this process by providing essential equipment. The sorted cardboard is fed into an Opal recycling baler, where it is compressed into dense bundles ready for Opal to reuse it to produce recycled paper at its Botany Mill in NSW. From there it’s turned back into new cardboard packaging products at one of Opal’s box making facilities.

It’s a partnership that supports a simple and effective loop, connecting local community with a broader recycling system that creates value from waste. Used cardboard moves through this cycle, entering and re-entering the recycling stream, aligned to the circular economy. The work happening at Endeavour Industries plays an important role in keeping that loop functioning.

Mitchell Rugless, NSW Sales & Operations Manager, Opal Recycling, says the strength of the partnership is built on practical support that enables meaningful work in the community.

“This partnership really shows what’s possible when circular economy thinking is combined with a genuine social purpose. It creates real, lasting benefits for the environment, and also for people and the local community,” says Mitchell.

“Opal Recycling helps provide a consistent flow of recyclable material, which in turn supports ongoing, meaningful work at the Endeavour Resource Recovery Centre. It’s a practical model that delivers strong social outcomes while also helping create stable, inclusive employment, says Liz McKeon, General Manager at Endeavour Industries.

“Working with Opal and the community means cardboard can be recovered, processed, used and then returned into the recycling stream through Opal’s manufacturing and recycling operations,” says Liz.

It’s a partnership that continues with a shared focus on doing practical work well, keeping materials in use and creating opportunities for regional communities.