In a program started in May in Canada and now running from the United States to Spain, TerraCycle collects cigarette butts from volunteers and turns them into plastic, which can be used for anything, even ashtrays themselves. The discarded cigarettes, which litter countries around the world, are first broken up, with the paper and remaining tobacco composted. The filter, made of a plastic called cellulose acetate, is melted down and turned into an ingredient for making a wide range of industrial plastic products, such as pallets -- the trays used to ship heavy goods. It seems that for once smoking benefits everyone. The tobacco industry, happy to get some decent publicity, pays TerraCycle. Volunteer collectors win points per butt, which can then be redeemed as contributions to charities. Sidewalks start looking cleaner. And TerraCycle, which sells recycled products to retailers like Walmart and Whole Foods, gets more business.

Recycling has come a long way from just simply separating paper, plastic and aluminum.  Today almost all materials can be recycled; from old cell phones and computers to tires and used car batteries.  Whether it’s making a swing from an old tire or using prescription bottles to store buttons, you can usually find a new use from something old. We’ve come across some unique organizations that are upcycling or turning old into new that we’d love to share with you: TerraCycle Terracycle has created various waste collection programs that take previous waste items and convert them into new products ranging from recycled park benches to upcycled backpacks.  Terracycle collects everything from candy wrappers and chip bags to flip flops and Elmer’s Glue.  Check out the awesome things they are accomplishing through recycling.  www.terracycle.com

As an employer of more than 100 people, I find dealing with the question of raises a constant challenge, one fraught with more negatives than positives. And yet, it’s an inevitable issue that crosses my desk constantly. While I can understand why employees would like to make more money, I also have other issues to consider. The challenge I face is reconciling the objective value a job creates for the organization with the subjective value of the individual filling that job. At TerraCycle, in 2012, we allocated $250,000 for raises on a total payroll of $5 million. In the hope of creating a coherent policy, we formed a compensation committee, consisting of five senior employees, to help figure out how to divide up the money we allocated. The group decided to give about half of the money to cover the rising cost of living, basically to adjust for inflation. As a guideline, we turned to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which releases (typically in September) annual inflation numbers to calculate each year’s cost-of-living adjustment. In 2012, it was 3.6 percent, and this year it is projected to be around 1.5 percent. The committee decided to give everyone who had been with TerraCycle for more than 12 months a 5 percent raise, which is of course greater than the cost of living adjustment. The rest of the money was used for “adjustment raises,” for those whose jobs had grown beyond the roles originally envisioned. Even though we believed we had a well thought out and fair process, no one came to me to thank me for a raise. Instead, about half a dozen people complained that they thought they should have gotten more. I empathize with my team, even those who complained, because it’s not easy to grapple with one’s own value to an organization. Here are some excerpts from a letter I wrote to one such person in an effort to explain how raises work at our organization and how employees can elevate their roles to command higher salaries.

TerraCycle is on a mission to eliminate the idea of waste. They do this by creating waste collection programs (each one is called a “Brigade”) for previously non-recyclable, or difficult-to-recycle, waste. The collected waste is then converted into new products, ranging from recycled park benches to upcycled backpacks. You can help make an impact in the world by becoming a member of one of these Brigades and sending in your waste to TerraCycle.

In a program started in May in Canada and now running from the United States to Spain, TerraCycle collects cigarette butts from volunteers and turns them into plastic, which can be used for anything, even ashtrays themselves. The discarded cigarettes, which litter countries around the world, are first broken up, with the paper and remaining tobacco composted. The filter, made of a plastic called cellulose acetate, is melted down and turned into an ingredient for making a wide range of industrial plastic products, such as pallets -- the trays used to ship heavy goods. It seems that for once smoking benefits everyone. The tobacco industry, happy to get some decent publicity, pays TerraCycle. Volunteer collectors win points per butt, which can then be redeemed as contributions to charities. Sidewalks start looking cleaner. And TerraCycle, which sells recycled products to retailers like Walmart and Whole Foods, gets more business. TerraCycle has a similarly creative view on all manner of other refuse that has tended to be bracketed as impossible to recycle and is instead sent to the landfill. Juice sachets, plastic bottles, pens, coffee capsules, candy wrappers, toothbrushes and computer keyboards are all grist for TerraCycle's mill.

At TerraCycle, in 2012, we allocated $250,000 for raises on a total payroll of $5 million. In the hope of creating a coherent policy, we formed a compensation committee, consisting of five senior employees, to help figure out how to divide up the money we allocated. The group decided to give about half of the money to cover the rising cost of living, basically to adjust for inflation. As a guideline, we turned to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which releases (typically in September) annual inflation numbers to calculate each year's cost-of-living adjustment. In 2012, it was 3.6 percent, and this year it is projected to be around 1.5 percent. The committee decided to give everyone who had been with TerraCycle for more than 12 months a 5 percent raise, which is of course greater than the cost of living adjustment. The rest of the money was used for "adjustment raises," for those whose jobs had grown beyond the roles originally envisioned.

¡¡Hemos conseguido recaudar 700 instrumentos de escritura!! Gracias a vuestra colaboración ya tenemos... ¡¡1400 puntos!! Ahora TerraCycle nos propone un nuevo concurso: El "Gran Reciclador" Gracias a este nuevo proyecto, la escuela que más instrumentos de escritura recolecte desde el 1 de Enero de 2013 hasta el 1 de diciembre de 2013 conseguirá un cheque de... ¡¡500€!! ¿NOS VOLVÉIS A AYUDAR?

Desde la ongd Persona Solidaridad  lanzan una campaña de reciclaje de bolígrafos, rotuladores... Se trata de todos aquellos instrumentos de escritura que agotados o estropeados ya no puedan seguir utilizándose. Para ello solo es necesario depositarlos en las cajas habilitadas en las diferentes facultades de la Universidad de Burgos. Tras el envío del material recogido a la empresa "Terracycle"  ésta donará una cantidad económica en función de los bolígrafos entregados.

Las colillas son tratadas para terminar convertidas en plástico Santiago de Chile.- Una buena noticia para los fumadores. Las colillas de los cigarrillos pueden ser reutilizadas. Aunque eso no quiere decir que esté bien fumar. De hecho, el programa de reciclaje de las colillas de cigarrillos tiene apoyo de las tabacaleras en los Estados Unidos. Se trata de una iniciativa desarrollada por una empresa canadiense llamada Terra Cycle. Esta compañía se especializa en el reciclado de distinto tipo de basura. De hecho, en distintos países realizan campañas con los envases de distintos productos como de la realización de bolsos y carteras con embalajes de jugo en polvo. El programa de reutilización de colillas de cigarrillo empezó el año pasado en Canadá, pero luego se replicó en Estados Unidos y en España El programa comienza cuando cientos de voluntarios, comienzan a recorrer las calles y ceniceros para recoger cada una de las colillas que los fumadores dejan tiradas. Luego, las colillas de cigarrillo son tratadas de manera tal, que se termina por convertir en plástico. El plástico se obtiene de las colillas pasan por un proceso de higiene, luego, se separa material que está hecho el filtro (acetato de celulosa) y se funde. El plástico permite realizar nuevos paquetes y embalajes. Además se pueden realizar elementos que sirven para el transporte o la producción como tarimas de embarque, tablas de “madera plástica” e incluso rieles para trenes Idea novedosa La empresa Terra Cycle, tiene una novedosa propuesta que puede resultar bastante práctica, en lo personal creo que puede ser una buena idea para ser trabajada por las escuelas. El método es el siguiente. En una caja, se separa el tipo de basura que se piensa reciclar, en este caso cigarrillos, pero en la página web se encuentran otros proyectos. Una vez que se juntan los residuos, se informa a Terra Cycle y estos pasan a retirar los residuos a través de un correo privado, sin ningún tipo de costo. Finalmente, se recibe una suma monetaria a cambio, que será destinada a una organización o institución solidaria que se pacta en el momento en que comienzas a transitar el camino del reciclaje de basura.

La Asociación de Esclerosis Múltiple de Burgos (Afaem) está dando los últimos retoques a su nuevo proyecto con el que va a intentar contrarrestar los dramáticos efectos de los recortes económicos de las administraciones. Se trata de una iniciativa de reciclaje de cualquier material de escritura de plástico (bolígrafos, rotuladores, marcadores y portaminas) puesta en marcha en España por BIC y la empresa de reciclaje TerraCycle (www.terracycle.es) con la que, a cambio de estos instrumentos se entregan puntos canjeables por donaciones.