--- description: Breaking news and analysis from time.com. Politics, world news, photos, video, tech reviews, health, science, and entertainment news. title: This is how a circular economy is built image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # This is how a circular economy is built ### About Glacier --- Rebecca Hu-Thrams​ is the co-founder of Glacier, a company that automates recycling with AI-powered robotics. She partnered with former Meta AI engineer Areeb Malik to create the technology, driven by a desire to solve the problem that 50% of recyclables in the U.S. end up in landfills. Glacier’s goal is to improve the economics of recycling to ensure that valuable materials are repurposed rather than lost, helping to create a more circular economy. Their proprietary system, which boasts over 3 billion images, can identify over 70 different materials in real-time with more than 99% accuracy, sorting up to 45 items per minute. [About PMI](http://pmi.org/ "undefined") --- PMI is the leading authority in project management, dedicated to guiding the way to project success. Since 1969, PMI has shone a light on the power of project management and the people behind the projects. With a global community, gold-standard professional certifications, and career-long learning opportunities, PMI empowers current and aspiring project professionals, as well as organizations, with knowledge and resources to lead effectively and create an impact in the communities they serve. [](https://www.pmi.org/project-management-for-impact?utm%5Fjob%5Fnumber=229&utm%5Fregion%5Fname=af-ap-as-eu-in-la-me-na&utm%5Fcampaign%5Fchannel=b2c&utm%5Ffunnel%5Fstage=awareness&utm%5Fmarketing%5Fchannel=affiliate&utm%5Fmarketing%5Fsubchannel=affiliate&utm%5Fstart%5Fdate=10092025&utm%5Fend%5Fdate=12312025&utm%5Fsource=not%5Fdefined&utm%5Fcustom%5Ffield%5Fone=none&utm%5Fcustom%5Ffield%5Ftwo=none&utm%5Fcustom%5Ffield%5Fthree=time%5Fsolutionaries&utm%5Fcustom%5Ffield%5Ffour=none&utm%5Fcustom%5Ffield%5Ffive=none) Our Team of the Year nominees encompass the highest performing teams who are working together to solve the world’s greatest issues and build a better future for all. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/project-management-institute/meet-the-innovators-revolutionizing-recycling/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/project-management-institute/meet-the-innovators-revolutionizing-recycling/"},"headline":"This is how a circular economy is built","datePublished":"2026-07-20T09:47:18.081Z","dateModified":"2026-07-20T09:47:13.460Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/branded-content/project-management-institute/meet-the-innovators-revolutionizing-recycling/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/project-management-institute/meet-the-innovators-revolutionizing-recycling/","name":"This is how a circular economy is built"}}]}] ```