recycling symbol

The universal recycling symbol ( or in Unicode) is a symbol consisting of three chasing arrows folded in a Möbius strip. It is an internationally recognized symbol for recycling. The symbol originated on the first Earth Day in 1970, created by Gary Anderson, then a 23-year-old student for the Container Corporation of America. The symbol is not trademarked and is in the public domain. Many variations on the logo have been created since its creation. History Worldwide attention to environmental issues led to the first Earth Day in 1970. Container Corporation of America, a large producer of recycled paperboard, sponsored a contest for art and design students at high schools and colleges across the country to raise awareness of environmental issues. It was won by Gary Anderson, then a 23-year-old college student at the University of Southern California, whose entry was the image now known as the universal recycling symbol. The public-domain status of the symbol has been challenged, but this challenge was unsuccessful owing to the wide use of the symbol. However, the universal recycling symbol may have been inspired by similar existing symbols at the time, such as one featuring two arrows chasing each other in a circle that Volkswagen stamped in the early 1960s into some automobile parts it remanufactured. Variants The recycling symbol is in the public domain and is not a trademark. The Container Corporation of America originally applied for a trademark on the design, but the application was challenged, and the corporation decided to abandon the claim. As such, anyone may use or modify the recycling symbol, royalty-free. Though use of the symbol is regulated by law in some countries, countless variants of it exist worldwide. Anderson's original proposal had the arrows form a triangle standing on its tip—upside down compared with the versions most commonly seen today—but the CCA, in adopting Anderson's design, rotated it 60° to stand on its base instead.