- Rose Maria
Many teenagers spend their free time on games, social media, or hanging out with friends. But Ryan Hulance, a 13-year-old boy from Solihull, England, is doing something very different. He is helping both people and the planet by recycling aluminium cans.
Ryan started this mission in 2023 with a simple idea—to collect empty drink cans and recycle them. What began as a small project soon became something much bigger. He turned his family garage into a mini recycling centre and started collecting cans from homes, schools, and local events.
Since then, Ryan has recycled more than 1.5 million cans.
Every week, he collects around 20,000 cans and spends nearly 20 hours sorting and preparing them for recycling after school and on weekends.
Ryan also started a community project called We Can CIC. Through this project, he encourages other people to recycle and care for the environment.
The money earned from recycling is donated to charities. So far, Ryan has raised around £15,000 to £16,000 (about $20,000) for food banks, women’s support groups, and families going through hard times.
Ryan says sometimes he feels like relaxing and playing games like other kids, but helping people gives him happiness and motivation to continue.
His story proves that you don’t need to be rich, famous, or older to make a difference. Small actions done with consistency can create a huge impact.
Ryan’s journey is a great reminder for young people: one small step can become something powerful. An empty can may look useless, but in the right hands, it can become hope for someone in need.
