Upcycling is, “simply put - using those items that cannot be recycled and remaking them into reusable items,” says DiColandrea. He uses energy bar wrappers as an example of how materials can be reused when they can’t be recycled.
“Its [energy bars] packaging remains very high as a waste, and recycling the packaging is not easy for some local recycling centers to do. Reusing the packaging to create another product is a simple and low-cost answer,” he added.
Green Starkville has created a team for Terracycle, a company which collects materials that can be reused to manufacture new items – upcycling. For each item received, Terracycle will give $0.02 to Green Starkville, and Terracycle turns the materials into everything from clipboards, bags, and toys to fences.
Unfortunately, just like in most towns, there’s a limit on what sort of materials they accept. Which is why when
TerraCycle emailed about their program I was so excited! TerraCycle is a small (but growing!) company that takes normally non-recyclable products and turns them into cool and useful stuff.
TerraCycle is an awesome program designed to help control the amount of waste produced from everyday items. They actually pay mothers, daycare centers, and schools for their waste which is then upcycled into rad products like backpacks, bird feeders, KITES, and bike pouches. Um, how freaking cool is that?
I was seriously blown away by the amount of trash that one tiny baby can create- baby food jars/lids, diaper boxes and plastic wrap, little baggies for this and that...unfortunately, the list goes on. TerraCycle has partnered with major companies like Huggies and Sprout Organic Baby Food (who pay for the costs of the program which = 100% free everything for participants! WIN!) and they need your diaper packaging and food pouches (any brand) so that they can start turning them into things like bibs, diaper bags, and cosmetic cases.
TerraCycle <
http://www.terracycle.net/> has the best business model — “Send us your trash… we’ll make it into cool products!” If you despair of all the waste generated by things like Capri Sun pouches, sign up your school or nonprofit organization for various TerraCycle “brigades.” <
http://www.terracycle.net/brigades> Collect used pouches, candy wrappers, and other items, send them in to TerraCycle, and get paid a couple cents for each. (Given the amount of these products kids go through, that can add up pretty quickly…)
*How great that the top 3 schools in VA that collected the most waste with this program are from the area! What a great way to pay it forward :)
Top 3 Schools in Virginia (based on amount collected this past school year):
Cedar Forest Elementary School in Fredericksburg – 42,685 pieces of waste diverted and $853 earned
Signal Hill Elementary School in Manassas – 37,566 pieces of waste diverted and $752 earned
St. Leo the Great School in Fairfax – 25,581 pieces of waste diverted and $512 earned
Terracycle <
http://www.myatlantamommy.com/2009/12/terracycle.html> is a fantastic organization which takes used wrappers and turns them into some super cool stuff! They are always coming up with fun and cool ways to recycle, but they also have come up with a way (actually 6 ways) Moms can go green, reduce waste at home, AND raise money for their kids school and/or favourite charity.
Terracycle <
http://www.terracycle.net/> is always coming up with fun and cool ways to recycle, but they also have come up with a way (actually 6 ways) Moms can go green, reduce waste at home, AND raise money for their kids school and/or favorite charity. Terracycle <
http://www.terracycle.net/> realizes Moms have enough things to think about without wondering how to reduce the amount of waste leaving their home and heading to the local landfill. So they have come up with six new Brigades (read as free collection programs!) to make it easier than ever for parents to eliminate waste from their home while raising money for a school or charity of their choice. All they need to do is collect and send in the packaging you discard every day, TerraCycle <
http://www.terracycle.net/> pays the postage and contributes two cents per unit of waste returned. I keep mine in a bag by the pantry next to the bag for Box Tops to make things easier.
when you have kids, you tend to start thinking about things you may not have before. like garbage, landfills and what part you can do to help said kids have a better place to live long after we are gone. going green is such a big part of every day life these days (or at least, it should be – even small steps help). so i was thrilled to hear from
TerraCycle and jumped on the opportunity to help them spread their mission.
TerraCycle is a small company who takes non-recyclable waste (and pays 2 cents per piece to charity) and turns them into upcycled and repurposed eco-friendly items. they take the things that most of us throw in the trash, because we can’t throw it in the recycle bin, and make pencil pouches, binders, tote bags, shower curtains and picture frames – just to name a few. think capri suns, doritos, skittles and other packaging. they even take soda bottles and remake them into containers for dog shampoo and garden fertilizer.
Terracycle <
http://www.myatlantamommy.com/2009/12/terracycle.html> is a fantastic organization which takes used wrappers and turns them into some super cool stuff! They are always coming up with fun and cool ways to recycle, but they also have come up with a way (actually 6 ways) Moms can go green, reduce waste at home, AND raise money for their kids school and/or favourite charity.
TerraCycle is a fantastic organization which takes used wrappers and turns them into some super cool stuff! They are always coming up with fun and cool ways to recycle, but they also have come up with a way (actually 6 ways) Moms can go green, reduce waste at home, AND raise money for their kids school and/or favorite charity.
