Dear Elizabeth, What kind of juice containers or boxes can I recycle?   Dear Reader, There are a few types of juice containers that are recyclable, and a few that are not depending on the types of plastic or liquid packaging board they are made out of. Juice boxes are recyclable with the curbside container recycling. They are made of aluminum, layers of paper, and plastic. Juice bottles made of plastic and glass are also recyclable.  Juice pouches such as Capri Suns are not recyclable at our local recycling facility. They should be placed in the trash or can be collected and mailed to TerraCycle, a company that takes hard to recycle items. Please remember to dispose of the straws in the trash and empty completely.

You probably already recycle all your plastic and glass bottles, cardboard packaging and metal cans. You may even have a compost pile in your yard, to recycle food waste. If you do, pat yourself on the back! Good job! Recycling helps to conserve resources, saves energy, protects the environment and reduces the amount of trash in our landfills.   But what if there were other recyclable items in your home, right under your nose, that you simply didn’t know about? While we are doing A LOT, we could be doing more to increase the amount of waste we recycle, and decrease waste being sent to the landfill.

There's no reason household cast-offs should be destined for the dump—plenty of nearby agencies are more than willing to give your old stuff from paint to cork to teddy bears a second life. Here's how to find them. Because most juice pouches are made of plastic polymer and aluminum, they unfortunately can't be recycled. You don't need to dump them, though. For every Honest Kids, Capri Sun, and Kool-Aid Drink pouch you send to TerraCycle, the company will donate 2 cents to the charity of your choice. (They provide free shipping, too!) What's more, your old juice pouches will get a second life as colorful purses, totes, and pencil cases, which are sold at Target and Walgreens stores throughout the U.S.

Bottles, cans, newspapers – they are obvious recyclables that most people separate out into a blue bin. Recycling is one small thing we do for mankind on a daily basis, but there’s a good chance you aren’t recycling all you can. If you want to up your recycling game look beyond the standard items and start separating out these lesser-known recyclables.

In Tom Szaky’s vision of the new economy, nothing is garbage. Not cigarette butts. Not dirty diapers. Not even used tampons.

Did you know that some people throw away items in the garbage that can be used for recycling? Simple things like paper towel tubes, pieces of paper and cardboard boxes are being thrown into garbage bins. In my daily life, I make it my goal to recycle these items, so that they can be reused in different ways. One place where I recycle is my home. My family recycles soda cans, cardboard boxes, old papers, plastic bottles and much more. In my garage we have two bins. One of the bins is a blue rectangle which is used for papers and anything that is made of cardboard. The second bin is a large green bin. That is used for glass bottles, soda cans, plastic water bottles, milk cartons and juice boxes. On Tuesday nights we put the bins at the end of our driveway so they can be picked up on Wednesday at around 6 AM.

October is arguably one of the most colorful and festive months of the year, and we are almost at the end of it! The leaves have turned, there’s a chill in the air, and Halloween is mere days away.  There’s nothing wrong with throwing together some finishing touches for your Halloween costume or spooky party décor at the last minute, but in case you’ve missed all of the plastic skeletons and jack-o-lanterns around you, time is running out! It’s the little details that take things over the top, but to save you a trip to the store, some money, and the product and packaging waste from the seasonal odds and ends you only use once a year, here are 5 last minute upcycled Halloween DIYs you can whip up using things you already have.

1. Capri Sun Halloween Mask

Never underestimate the allure of a well-placed masquerade-style mask. Are you Zorro? A debutante? A superhero? Who knows! But even without full disguise grab, this nifty Halloween mask is an instant costume and adds interest and intrigue with its eye-catching, unconventional material. Click HERE for Capri Sun Halloween Mask DIY Instructions

2. Wellness Dog Cape

Dogs are the real MVP. They love us unconditionally, and just want to spend time with us. Include your furry friend in the Halloween festivities by crafting a handmade costume that speaks to the hero they are inside. Super dogs super upcycle! Design Tip: This sizing is for a smaller dog; scale accordingly for your pet. Click HERE for Wellness Dog Cape DIY Instructions

3. Nespresso Capsule Bracelet

It’s been said that 25% of your wardrobe budget should go towards your accessories; we disagree. Give your Halloween costume (and your everyday ensemble) that je ne se quoi at little cost; if you have all of the materials, it would be a negative cost since you’d normally throw out used coffee capsules and are tapping into a new resource for your DIY supplies: positively energizing! Click HERE for Nespresso Capsule Bracelet DIY Instructions

4. Chocolate Wrapper Barrettes

Don’t forget to jazz up your hair! Perfect for children who need a bit of help keeping their mane tame and tidy in general, this fun, voluminous hair barrette lends itself well to a costume for a baton twirler, a faux flower for a hula dancer, or, more literally, a topping for a sweet confectionary treat like a cupcake or lollipop. Click HERE for Chocolate Wrapper Barrettes DIY Instructions

5. Shampoo Bottle Chandelier

Get togethers and parties are an excellent reason to decorate, and this DIY shampoo bottle chandelier gives off a ghoulish green ambiance that’s perfect for All Hallows’ Eve. Bold, bright and boo-tiful (we had to!), a centerpiece you made yourself is sure to be a conversation starter. Don’t have enough bottles? Swap in some empties of other containers like lotions, conditioners, or beverages—better yet, ask your friends for their recyclables! Click HERE for Shampoo Bottle Chandelier  DIY Instructions Holidays are about having fun. Best part about these Halloween DIYs is that they allow you to use your creativity and your rubbish to make something amazing with items you already have. If you can make something out of “nothing,” just think of what else your resourceful self can do! Another option: make nature-inspired Halloween crafts from the world around you. Happy Halloween Upcycling!

We live in a world of packaging. Unless you buy every single food item in bulk, never buy pre-made snacks or meals, and never grab a snack on a whim at a nearby bodega, there’s a very good chance you have a decent amount of packaging in your house. While some things, like cardboard cereal boxes, Tetrapacks, and glass bottles, are a bit easier to sort, there are other items like chip bags, juice pouches, and bar wrappers that don’t seem to belong in any particular recycling bin. With this problem in mind, TerraCycle was born. This innovative recycling program allows consumers to send in material they can’t recycle on their own and allow TerraCycle to take care of it. While TerraCycle has programs that require consumers to purchase special boxes where they can send waste in, the company also partners with different brands and companies to offer free recycling programs. Pretty much what this entails is TerraCycle sending a packing box or envelope to your home, you filling it up with the waste from a particular brand, sending it back for free, and subsequently feeling good about helping bring down the amount of trash that ends up in landfills. Then TerraCycle finds better uses for the material. Pretty good deal for all! Want to participate? Check out these 12 brands that have partnered with TerraCycle to get started. Happy recycling!

The potato chip bags and Capri Sun pouches are part of specialized recycling programs run by TerraCycle, a company based in New Jersey. Richardson ships boxes packed with the recycling material to the company’s processing center. The program is free, and the company has used recycled materials to produce new goods, such as pens made from recycled pens. The company has about 5,000 recycling customers in Maryland, according to TerraCycle spokeswoman Lauren Taylor.

As a seven-year-old, Patrick Dollard got to drive the horse team on his grandfather’s Sullivan County dairy farm, while his older brothers pitched hay. Today, in a way, Dollard is still running a farm in Sullivan County. He is president and CEO of The Center for Discovery, a remarkable facility based in Hurleyville, NY that has quietly evolved not only into the largest residential treatment center for disabled children in the state, but also a visionary, industrial-capacity farm that grows clean food for its students and staff, plus a 300-member CSA and a farm market on Hurleyville’s Main Street.