Victor Cojocaru is a Front-End Web Developer at WasteTrade and joined the team recently. Although he has only been here a short time, he has already made a positive impact since joining the team. We thought it would be great to sit down with him during Careers Week to learn more about his professional background, his experience at WasteTrade so far, and his goals for his role in the company.

How long have you been working at WasteTrade?

I have been in my role here at WasteTrade for just six weeks.

What sector did you work in before you joined the team at WasteTrade?

Before starting at WasteTrade I actually worked in the construction industry for about two and a half years.

What made you decide a career in the recycling industry was right for you?

At first the plan wasn’t to move into the recycling industry. I had decided that I wanted to change career direction, so I did a course in web development. The world is only becoming more digital, so this felt like a great skillset to have to give me great prospects going forward. I saw the web development position at WasteTrade being advertised and I applied as it seemed like a great company with a clear vision for making positive change. I’m glad to say that my time here has proven that to be the case.

What did you expect when you began your new role at WasteTrade?

I started my new role here at WasteTrade straight after I finished my web development course, so I expected it would give me lots of opportunity to improve on my new skillset and to get more experience. As for WasteTrade itself, I really had no idea what to expect. I was both new in this role and new in this industry, so it was a completely fresh start for me.

How has your experience of working at WasteTrade differed to what you expected?

Working at WasteTrade has been different from what I expected in a great way. I came into this role expecting to solely focus on developing my web development skills – which I have had plenty of opportunities to do. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that my role at WasteTrade is more than just about web development. I became part of a team that has great energy and a real passion for the environment and making a positive impact.

I have had the chance to learn more about the waste management industry and the challenges it faces, the effects of human activity on the environment, and how technology can be used to solve these problems. It has been eye-opening to see the impact of waste management on the environment and the importance of finding sustainable solutions. I am very excited to be part of an organisation that is committed to finding innovative solutions to tackle these issues.

Can you walk us through one of the recent projects you have worked on and what your part in it was?

One of the recent projects I took part in was a campaign to inform people about plastic waste, how harmful it is for environment and what can we do to reduce and recycle it. My role in the project was to lead the design process of the web pages and implement them on the website. I also added the necessary content and media to make the pages ready for publishing.

Has working at WasteTrade taught you anything about recycling and waste management that you didn’t know before?

Working at WasteTrade has taught me so much about recycling and waste management, the challenges these industries face and the impact they have on the environment. The effort the WasteTrade team is going to in order to reduce waste and push for a circular economy is inspiring.

Before starting here, I had no idea how many different types of plastic were actually recyclable, or just how much of the waste we produce still has use and value after we dispose of it. But working here, I am learning about all of this; my role here has helped me understand just how complex this industry is, and just how much it needs technology solutions like WasteTrade.

Do you have any goals you hope to achieve in your role at WasteTrade?

Yes, I have a few goals for what I would like to achieve here. I would like to continue to improve in my abilities as a web developer. Given how varied the nature of my work here is, I will have no trouble achieving that goal. Also, I would like my work here at WasteTrade to reach as many people as possible and help them understand just how important recycling is, as well as how important it is that the waste management industry gets the attention and investment that it needs.

Do you have a message for everyone about the importance of recycling?

Yes, I do have a message for everyone about the importance of recycling! We are all share this planet, therefore we share the responsibility to protect it. To do this, we have to take responsibility for how we as individuals treat it. We can all make a difference if we take steps to reduce and recycle as much of our waste as possible. We also need to make the businesses who rely on our money understand that we want them to start taking their responsibility to protect the environment seriously, and to make our government understand that we want them to be investing in the future of the recycling and waste management industries.