With the evolution of sight and the reimbursements of complementary health insurance every two years on average, the question of recycling glasses arises. In fact, the issue of producing frames is often the subject of innovations designed to make them more durable. But what about recycling? Some players in favor of a responsible approach already have solutions to propose.
Recycling glasses
To fully understand the problem of recycling glasses , it is still best to mention the figures. It is estimated that around 100 million pairs are unused for various reasons (broken frames, sleeping in a drawer …) We know that there are already ways to recycle old pairs of glasses, in particular through charities.
Associations such as the Lions Club or Glasses Without Borders , collect, sort and send pairs that can serve the most disadvantaged.
Like Carole Riehl of Optic for Good rightly mentions it, a frame that will be used by someone else will remain a waste that will end up, at the end of the chain, at the bottom of a dumpster. The site has also made the autopsy of an optical frame so that we can understand the difficulty of recycling such an object.
The site therefore offers recycling 100% and in a sustainable manner. He also mentions solving the problem of an object that opticians are familiar with: the presentation caliber . This piece of plexiglass has a very relative lifespan and also ends up at the bottom of a dumpster. Optic for Good therefore offers opticians to recover calibers in addition to frames in order to operate their recycling.
The association has established a complete recycling process presented in this infographic:
Recycled glasses transformed into … glasses
Of course, the best way not to create waste is not to produce. But what if we could reincarnate glasses? This is the crazy bet of LunelVintage , an eyewear launched in 2018 by Pauline Fur, a professional chemist based in Charentes-Maritime.
Pauline collects old frames intended to be destroyed and in realizes new, more robust, for better durability. Based on the maxim "Nothing is thrown away, nothing is lost, everything is transformed", for example glasses are revalued by a jewelry designer!
The idea of recycling everything doesn't stop with glasses either: the cases and business cards are all made from recycled materials .
New ways to recycle our glasses will undoubtedly emerge in the years to come. While recycling processes are never perfect, these initiatives make it possible to move towards greater responsibility. This is how everyone will find something for themselves, in a society where one of the major challenges remains to transform the way people consume.
Sources: Optic for Good, LunelVintage
How many pairs of glasses , solar as seen, are in the closet while they could still protect or improve the sight of a third person? If some keep the same mounts of years, many others change pairs annually, or almost. To prevent collections of unused glasses piling up at home, discover ways to enhance this hidden treasure in the drawers, which would make it fun, or enjoy!
A recycling glasses humanitarian & solidarity
According to a survey conducted by our member Atol in 2015, there are 100 million pairs of glasses that would be unused in France, an average of two devices per eyeglass wearer. This considerable treasure could however make many happy! It is estimated that 90% of the visually impaired are in developing countries, where optical equipment is difficult to access or inaccessible.
However, the initiatives of the signs and associations are numerous. The Association Sans Frontières especially, collecting mounts and glasses to redistribute them to people in difficulty . This is also the case for the Medico Lions Club of France, which annually recovers nearly 100,000 pairs of glasses, recycles them and ships them around the world. These collections would not be allowed without the collaboration of many opticians, independent and franchised, who sensitize their customers to the solidarity valuation of their used pairs .
The Krys Foundation launches eg every year a large collection campaign in its stores. This allows the equipment to be rerouted to the partner associations which redistribute it to disadvantaged populations around the world. The Atol network offers him the " Second Life " offer that allows you to get a discount on new equipment in exchange for the recovery of an unused pair .
Also, many pharmacists recover optical equipment in addition to unused or expired medicines with dedicated containers . Hundreds of thousands of glasses are collected through these initiatives and change lives !
A rewarding recycling
The view and the fashion can evolve quickly: one can quickly get tired of the frame that one likes so much and relegate it to the cupboard. But this pair on the sideline can prove to be a valuable financial asset to renew its equipment . Often underestimated, the second-hand market does indeed exist in the field of optics . In a few clicks, it is now possible to sell his sunglasses or sight but also to buy "new" used !
The MyBinocle website has launched the first optical consignment site. It is thus possible to sell the pair of glasses via a small ad while keeping it at home in a classic way. But also to entrust to a optician MyBinocle who will review, clean and take a picture of the pair to form a "premium" ad , and then ship it once sold! It is also possible to put glasses in the sight of customers on bare frames. The purchases made on the site can also be supported by the mutuals , as for the purchase of a new equipment in conventional shop.
Eyeglass craze started from a different point of view: fashion is cyclical and the glasses have already made more than one ride, so value the original rather than buying new reproductions; the consecration of vintage in sum. Thus, the team searches for and finds frames that it selects beforehand, then restores them to offer them in a new condition at a workshop price.
We recently talked about eco-friendly innovations that deal with downstream recycling issues and make the purchase of glasses responsible. The second-hand market is an upstream alternative but equally responsible, ecological and economical . But beyond the aspect of buying / selling, depositing your unused glasses in a gathering place and in a sharing process should become a reflex as it is a citizen gesture : to all of us to raise awareness of our environment and our customers in this area. meaning.
