SPANISH FORT, Ala. — It's not yet Earth Day, but Baldwin County residents have no shortage of options for going green a little earlier than usual.

Trenton, N.J.-based TerraCycle Inc. has partnered with Old Navy and Office Depot to run recycling drives across the country throughout the month of April, and at least eight local schools have found a new fundraising partner in the process.

Founded in 2001 by Tom Szaky, a then-20-year-old Princeton University freshman, TerraCycle began by producing organic fertilizer and has grown into one of the fastest-growing green companies in the world. Success has come from encouraging consumers to “rethink waste” by finding uses for previously unrecyclable materials. The company produces everything from fencing and insulated coolers to fertilizers and all-purpose cleaners, but it does so by collecting and recycling everything from drink pouches and candy wrappers to potato chip bags and toothbrushes.

“We hope customers will see how easy it is to reduce the amount of garbage they send to their local landfills,” Szaky said.

In turn, the company supports schools and nonprofit organizations by offering 2 cents per discarded package collected, and local schools have latched on to the environmentally conscious fundraising option.

To date, the Silverhill Elementary School PTA and Spanish Fort Presbyterian School have adopted the program as have Fairhope, Gulf Shores, Robertsdale, Elsanor, Rockwell and Spanish Fort elementary schools.

Of course, school children aren’t the only beneficiaries of the company’s unique brand of philanthropy.

Between April 17 and 23, shoppers can bring in 10 used pens, markers or mechanical pencils to any Office Depot location and receive a coupon toward the purchase of a new product from Sanford, maker of such trademarked brands as Sharpie, Expo and PaperMate. The collected writing utensils will then be converted by TerraCycle into office supplies such as desk organizers, trash cans and even those easily recognizable blue plastic recycling bins.

“One pen or marker might not seem like a significant addition to a landfill, but considering there are an estimated $5 billion worth of writing instruments sold in the U.S. each year, this is an opportunity to make a big difference,” said Ben Gadbois, president of markers, highlighters, art and office essentials for Newell Rubbermaid Office Products.

Meanwhile, Old Navy locations will begin collecting flip-flops April 22 to be converted by TerraCycle into playgrounds that will then be donated to communities nationwide.

“By bringing in these hard-to-recycle products to their local stores, consumers help keep waste out of their community landfills,” said TerraCycle spokeswoman Megan Yarnall.