Recyclebank to Discuss Smarter Cities on Panel at the SXSW Interactive Festival

AUSTIN, TX, SXSW, March 7, 2013 /3BL Media/ - Recyclebank®, the company that rewards people for taking everyday green actions with discounts and deals, today announced that Erika Diamond, community solutions vice president, will join a panel at the SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas, to discuss how smart, sustainable cities and digital innovation are creating better environments for citizens. The panel, “Hacking Cities for a Better, Sustainable Tomorrow,” brings together leading digital innovators and government pioneers from the NYC Digital Program, Code for America and TIME Magazine to dissect how the emerging wave of digital place-based, localized innovation is making more sustainable cities — one app at a time.

Diamond will address Recyclebank’s relationship with city governments to increase engagement with citizens and to inspire a sense of community through innovative programs that motivate people to change their recycling behavior, reduce their environmental footprint and become more knowledgeable about sustainable lifestyles. Recyclebank educates and empowers its more than four million members to make more sustainable choices and take actions such as increasing household recycling, curbing energy and water consumption and choosing smarter transportation. Diamond’s fellow panelists will offer additional insight on the role technology plays in civic engagement and the use of digital and social innovation to create smarter, open governments. They will discuss how cities can overcome budgetary roadblocks with digital solutions, and enhance efficiencies to improve civic accountability and management.

“We are seeing more and more cities recognizing the value of civic engagement through digital channels to collaboratively improve their communities. At Recyclebank, the core of our business is working with governments to amplify the consciousness of its citizens and provide the platform to change behavior for the environmental good,” said Diamond. “Bringing together digital innovation with our mission of motivating everyday, sustainable actions has proven to be a model we have scaled to mass audiences; I look forward to discussing how we can deepen our engagement with my fellow panelists to make an even larger impact.”

At Recyclebank, Diamond heads up the community solutions portion of the product team, focusing on the curbside recycling product. Prior to joining Recyclebank, Diamond oversaw sales, partnership and retail efforts at New York City-based ThinkEco. She is also co-founder and president of the Harvard Business School Green Business Alumni Association and has more than 10 years experience in business development and marketing for green companies.

The details for Diamond’s session are as follows:

Who: Erika Diamond, vice president of community solutions, Recyclebank

Rachel S. Haot, chief digital officer, New York City

Abhi Nemani, chief of staff, Code for America

Moderator: Bryan Walsh, Senior Writer, TIME Magazine

What: “Hacking Cities for a Better, Sustainable Tomorrow” panel discussion; event hashtags: #SmartCity, #sxsw

Where: SXSW Interactive Festival, Austin Convention Center, Room 9ABC

When: Saturday, March 9, from 5-6 p.m. CST

ABOUT RECYCLEBANK

Recyclebank helps create a more sustainable future by rewarding people for taking everyday green actions with discounts and deals from more than 4,000 local businesses and national brands. Through its online platform and partnerships with municipalities, haulers, small businesses and corporate brands, Recyclebank empowers individuals to make a collective impact on the environment by increasing household recycling and taking other environmentally-friendly actions. A Certified B Corporation, Recyclebank has been recognized as a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum, a Champion of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Program and for Outstanding Excellence in Public/Private Partnerships from the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Recyclebank is headquartered in New York City. For more information, visit www.Recyclebank.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Elissa Davis | The Bateman Group for Recyclebank

(718) 355-8722| recyclebank@bateman-group.com

Jeff Harse | Recyclebank

(212) 659-6491 | jharse@recyclebank.com