Anyone over 21 has access to some of the best upcycling materials around – wine packaging. If your wine of choice comes from a bottle, then the cork and glass container provide great inspiration. Empty wine boxes present another opportunity for cutting, gluing and pasting into new projects. At TerraCycle, we were challenged by The Naked Grape to come up with brand new projects made from wine packaging.   Wine corks have so much character to them. The ends of the cork show a glimpse to your preference of red versus white. Wine boxes, on the other hand, come in a rainbow of colors allowing you to mix and match and even color coordinate with your home décor. Gather up the packaging from your favorite vintage and let’s get to work.   Wine Corks Earrings If you’ve just started your wine cork collection, then earrings are the way to go. One wine cork can go a long way and can be sliced into a few pairs of earrings. It’s a fun solution to keep your wine corks hanging around.   Wine Cork Door Knob Stopper Add one wine cork to a vintage door knob and you’ve got your very own up-upcycled wine stopper. Since this comes from a pair of upcycled materials, it’s surely a project that you’ll adore.   Wine Cork Namecard HolderPair up two sets of wine corks for the perfect place to hold guests names. You can uncork your creativity and use upcycled coffee sleeves or other scrap paper for the card.   Monogram LettersNow that you’re a pro at wine cork collecting and you’ve recruited friends and family, too, you’re ready to move on to wine cork letters. Use cardboard as the base material (great use for that wine box) and glue and assemble corks onto the letters, showing off the red and white ends.   Wine Boxes For those of you who drink from the boxed wine varietal, here are some projects that get you thinking outside the recycled box.   Coaster Coast in on this easy coaster project. Simply trace an existing coaster or other round object and cut it into shape. You can always add embellishment with markers, glitter, and more.   Wine CharmsThis wine charm project is a simple way to identify your glass throughout the evening. And best of all, it’s made from the packaging itself giving it added charm.   Placecard HolderCut and fold a box in a few simple spots and you’ve crafted a spot for your favorite name.   Wine Box ToteSimply cut your box in half and add a ribbon handle to create a tote for an easy way to transport a gift or other small cargo.   Magnetic Word PlayGlue magnets to the back of your box and use the text from to create your own magnetic word set. You can mix and match words and create your own messages and poems. The possibilities are endless and you can reuse these magnets over and over.   Picture FrameFrame your favorite photo inside your favorite flavor. This picture perfect project is simple to create with a few strategic cuts and is a great way to reuse your box.   Wine Box Business Card HolderGet down to business with this project that was featured on Made + Remade’s site last year. Download the template and trace and cut. - See more at: http://blog.diynetwork.com/maderemade/2014/07/29/15-projects-you-can-make-from-wine-packaging/#sthash.VuNRUobh.dpuf

Employees at Crossroads of Western Iowa are among the top collectors of lunch kits in the Lunch Kit Brigade, a free, national recycling program created by Lunchables Lunch Combinations and TerraCycle. By collecting used lunch kits, the office has helped to divert 1,291 units of lunch kit waste from landfills.

Tewksbury Town Crier July 9th, 2014

Town Crier July 18-July 24

LUCEDALE, Mississippi -- LC Hatcher students earn money and prizes for their school by collecting and recycling the drink pouches they use at home and in the lunchroom. LC Hatcher students have just reached the second level of TerraCycle and Capri Sun's Drink Pouch Brigade milestone contest by collecting more than 18,000 drink pouches. The students have earned almost $1,600 for their school by collecting the drink pouches. The Drink Pouch Brigade is a free recycling program that rewards people for collecting and sending their waste to TerraCycle to be recycled or upcycled. The Milestone Program began in September 2013 when Capri Sun added prizes for collecting certain amounts. Now, in addition to the money they earn for each piece of waste collected, participants can win prizes made from recycled drink pouches, such as park benches, recycling bins, a playground, and other fun rewards. "The Milestone Program is meant to inspire individuals and organizations to collect more waste while receiving prizes for their achievements," said Tom Szaky, CEO of TerraCycle. "It is rewarding to see the students and administration get so involved in making this work," he said. "It's an incredible achievement to have kept so many pouches out of the waste stream." Thousands of other schools across the United States participate in the Drink Pouch Brigade. To learn more about the program or to sign up, visit www.terracycle.com. The program is free to any interested organization or individual, and all shipping costs are paid. In addition, for each piece of waste received, participants earn money for a charity of their choice.

Cover story Albe contributed to for lead PR trade pub, PR News. 8.4.14 - PR News

How is your summer going? Ours is go, go, go! All year long we are super active here in Telluride, Colorado. What changes in the summer when the snow is not dumping down? Oh lots! We hike, mountain bike, fish, play in the park, swim, go on Jeep tours… and more! Where are you gonna find us? OUTSIDE! So what do we bring on our outdoor adventures? A whole lot of simple, healthy & delicious snacks. We also pack lots to drink. It’s so easy to get dehydrated in the high altitude sun & we need to make sure we are as hydrated as possible. Capri Sun juice drinks are an awesome way to drink up, besides they taste awesome! Did you know:

• Capri Sun juice drinks has no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives and has a new clear bottom pouch to show off the purity.
• Don’t be shy… this drink is a great for you as it is for your kiddos!
• Since 2008, more than 200 million Capri Sun juice drink pouches have been collected through Capri Sun’s partnership with TerraCycle and recycled and upcycled into durable goods.
• Capri Sun juice drink pouches now have clear bottoms because Capri Sun consumers expressed the desire for this innovation.
• In 2012, Capri Sun invested in creating a new box for Capri Sun pouches, remaking the iconic box with paperboard instead of cardboard – a change that resulted in a 30 million pound reduction in packaging in 2012. Capri Sun is always looking for ways to improve their packaging while providing consumers with the great-tasting juice drink they’ve come to expect from Capri Sun.

TerraCycle is a company that allows our community to recycle and upcycle items that would otherwise be added to landfills. Through this program we not only help the environment, but TerraCycle also donates money back into our community To help keep this program alive at RES, please consider volunteering for about an hour every month or every other month to sort through TerraCycle items brought in by students. You can make the experience more fun by signing up with a friend and having your children help! If you are interested, or just want to learn more, please contact Katie LeFrancois at 434-3159 or kblefrancois@gmavt.net. Thank you!

With your very next purchase, consider how long you will have that item. Until you finish drinking it? Till it's no longer fashionable? Until the next version is released? Then, what? In a nation founded on democratic freedoms with a capitalist core, we have the privilege of choosing from hundreds of brands for everything from our beverages to what we drive and how we desire to dress. With those privileges come responsibilities. "Conscious consumerism is a reminder that consuming affects humanity and the world at large. We need to remember our purchases have power to express our beliefs," said Julie Gilhart, one of fashion industry's most influential consultants. Fashion may be one of the simplest ways to express our beliefs. What does your shirt say about you? Coyote Howling features Feed My Starving Children T-shirts for $16.50. The full 100 percent of purchase price is dedicated to FMSC MobilePack events hosted in Lincoln County. Each shirt funds a nutritious, life-sustaining meal for 75 children. Each MobiePack prepares a minimum of 100,000 meals for $22,000. Coyote Howling allies with SustainU to feature T-shirts made in the USA from 100 percent recycled cotton/poly materials. The newest is "Turn Hunger into HOPE" featuring the TerraCycle logo. Looking for a competitive advantage in an industry increasingly affected by outsourcing, American textiles companies pioneered work with recycled fibers. The result was a ground-breaking fabric that may change the trajectory of clothing and apparel. Determined to regrow American manufacturing after many companies started to offshore in the mid '90s, American cut and sew factories are creating quality garments and employment opportunities. Coyote Howling is proud to work with SustainU and its offices and factories in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, North and South Carolina and Tennessee. Coyote Howling has combined energy with Sevenly, another for-profit social good company. Sevenly gives $7 of each purchase to the mission of the week and regularly features FMSC. Sevenly shirts and prints feature reminders such as "Together, we can feed a nation," and Nelson Mandela's message, "There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children." Sevenly declares on their website, "We have found that there is no greater calling than to provide, heal, rescue, and serve others. Ultimately, our desire is to move a generation toward generosity and an intentional love for others." Like Coyote Howling, Sevenly is a purchase with purpose business that turns to Matthew 22:36-40 for its mission, The Greatest Commandment. Coyote Howling continues to expand its SERRV international fair-trade selections. Artists from around the globe make handcraft ranging from carved marble elephants to re-purposed paper jewelry. Artists participate with SERRV, a non-profit organization, to earn sustainable incomes for food, medical care, and education for their families. When we need or desire to buy something, we can make an effort to be the most "conscious" consumers possible, taking into account the broad impacts that our purchases have on people and the environment. Part of being a conscious consumer is thinking about what we buy and why we buy it. Another part is considering what it is made of/from and who was involved in the making. Next week, we'll consider yet another aspect of how to become more conscious consumers by asking what we do with things we buy after we buy them. Tonya Huber, PhD, is founder and owner of Coyote Howling Shop for a Cause Contact her at CoyoteHowlingNM@gmail.com 575-808-8320.

Leave No Footprint owner Christina Haas, pictured here after a pickup, wants to help New Yorkers properly dispose of items such as batteries and old electronics. View Full Caption DNAinfo/Lindsay Armstrong WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Christina Haas wants to help uptown residents clean up their acts. The Washington Heights resident recently launched Leave No Footprint, a business dedicated to helping northern Manhattanites recycle hard-to-get-rid-of items such as batteries, leftover paint and old electronics. Like many entrepreneurs, Haas, 41, drew inspiration from her own life to come up with the idea for her business. “I was at home looking at piles and bags of what many would consider trash, but they were things I didn’t want to put into the regular trash stream,” she said. “I thought, I can’t be the only person who has this problem — a house full of stuff but no time to take everything to the proper recycling places.” Haas currently works as a broadcast standards manager at ABC but has a longtime interest in environmentalism. She has a master’s degree in environmental sciences and hopes to use it to reduce waste and divert materials from landfills. She thinks that other New Yorkers want to do the same, but aren’t sure of how to accomplish that goal. “I believe people want to do the right thing in terms of recycling, but it’s hard, especially in New York City where the program is limited,” Haas explained. The city does provide curbside recycling pickup for common items such as cardboard boxes, soda cans and milk cartons. However, many items are not accepted by the program and have to be taken to special drop-off centers in hard-to-reach corners of the city or dumped during special e-recycling events. Haas hopes to act as a middleman in order to get other people’s stuff where it needs to go. When she picks up an order from a customer, she takes it to a storage place that she rents and sorts through the load. Her first priority is to donate materials whenever possible to nonprofit organizations and schools. For items that are no longer usable, she determines the best way to recycle them, whether that’s through the city or through private companies that offer free recycling programs, such as Best Buy. Haas also plans to work with companies such as TerraCycle, which collects difficult-to-recycle packaging materials and turns them into new products — such as a shoulder bag made from soda pull tabs or a picture frame made from a bike chain. “We’re very lucky in New York because there are so many organizations that recycle just about anything you could think of,” she said. Haas came up with the idea for Leave No Footprint about two months ago. Before opening for business, she floated the idea on several local listservs to see if people were interested in such a service. The positive response convinced her to try the idea out on a part-time basis. She also researched other waste-removal services like 1-800-JUNK, but found that no one else was approaching the business with a specific focus on upcycling and recycling. Leave No Footprint has only been in operation for about a week, but Haas has already done two pickups and has three more scheduled. She said that most popular items people have by far are old electronics. Bruce Jaffe, who runs his own computer repair business Computer Tutor/Computer Doctor, recently hired Haas to remove several pieces of equipment that had been crowding his apartment for years. It is illegal to throw computer equipment away rather than recycle it, and he said the biggest factor in his decision to use the service was time. "To me, with the time I'd spend doing that, I could be serving more customers, which is a much better use of my time," said Jaffe, 64. Haas picked up nine hard drives and a few laptops from him on Wednesday. "It’s such a good feeling to have those objects out of here," he said. "I’m starting to think about what else I can get rid of." In order to generate interest in the fledgling business, Haas is offering an introductory price of $20 for any size collection. As the business grows, she may change the pricing model based on the size of the items and the difficulty associated with recycling them. Haas hopes to someday make Leave No Footprint her full-time job. But either way, it is her passion. “My focus is to get as much waste as possible diverted from the landfills,” she said. “I really believe that you can recycle most of your trash if you just know how to do it.”