The recycling logo that you encounter every day has a history associated with it too. It happened when the Container Corporation of America organized a design competition in 1970 to mark Earth Day on April 22.
Gary Anderson, an engineering student went ahead to participate in it without any experience in graphic designing and came up with this symbol.
Anderson later revealed, “It didn’t take me long to come up with my design: a day or two. I almost hate to admit that now." But I’d already done a presentation on recycling waste water and I’d come up with a graphic that described the flow of water: from reservoirs through to consumption, so I already had arrows and arcs and angles in my mind.”
We all know the popularity that his design gained over the years.