Gary Ander­son (above right) and his orig­i­nal design of the recy­cling glyph.

“It has been called one of America’s ‘most impor­tant design icons,’ it is one of the most rec­og­niz­able graph­ic sym­bols in the world and has helped to encour­age glob­al recy­cling. In some coun­tries, such as the UK, the sym­bol car­ries such implic­it mean­ing that it requires gov­ern­ment per­mis­sion to be used. Although the sym­bol is the most wide­ly known of his accom­plish­ments, Ander­son has also made impor­tant con­tri­bu­tions in the areas of urban plan­ning and urban devel­op­ment.”

Gary Ander­son on Wikipedia