In Early February 2013, I did a story for the Tribune de Genève on TerraCycle and its young CEO, Tom Szaky. Tom Szaky recycles all he can think of. It goes from used diapers to cans and to cigarette butts. He also recycles plastic bottles and everything that is worth something in the Chureca as well. But he goes one step further. With his team, he thinks about a way to reinvent garbage and recycle it into a new product. For instance, cigarette butts are turned into ashtrays among other things. He keeps talking about outsmarting waste: “Instead of the product being the driver, garbage is the driver”.

I just got word that LARABAR has partnered up with TerraCycle to make their wrappers recyclable. It was exciting enough that I couldn't help but post about it! So if you're a fan of their yummy date-sweetened treats, feed the trash no more. Visit http://www.larabar.com/programs/terracycle for more details.

McLoughlin Elementary is starting a recycling program through a company called TerraCycle. With this program McLoughlin students can opt to recycle several different types of household materials with a goal of keeping these items out of the landfill and to raise money for the school.

In just over a year and a half, 21 The North Face stores across the country have recycled more than 1 million plastic polybags through a program with upcycling and recycling firm TerraCycle. The Natick store on Worcester Street is one of the stores that has contributed to keeping the 1 million bags or 20 tons out of landfills. Through this program, The North Face, supplier of  innovative and technically advanced outdoor apparel, equipment and footwear, and TerraCycle are actively pursuing a solution to a common packaging waste problem in the apparel industry.

In just over a year and a half, 21 The North Face® stores across the country have recycled more than one million plastic polybags through a program with upcycling and recycling pioneer, TerraCycle. The Natick store on Worcester Street is one of the stores that has contributed to keeping the one million bags or 20 tons out of landfills. Through this program, The North Face, the world’s premier supplier of authentic, innovative and technically advanced outdoor apparel, equipment and footwear, and TerraCycle are actively pursuing a solution to a common packaging waste problem in the apparel industry. Until this partnership between The North Face and TerraCycle, the 21 stores were not able to readily recycle the polyethylene bags that protect apparel through distribution and transit. Now, the bags will be recycled into a variety of different products such as plastic lumber, bike racks and pavers.

TerraCycle created recycling programs called “Brigades” for previously non-recyclable or hard-to-recycle waste. It began a partnership with Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company (SFNTC) last November to launch the first US cigarette-waste recycling program. “SFNTC has a long-standing commitment to environmental sustainability, and we were looking for a way to further bring that to life when we learned about TerraCycle's method to recycle certain types of cigarette waste,” says director of communications Seth Moskowitz. Organizations or individuals can sign-up for free on TerraCycle's website to become members of the “Cigarette Waste Brigade” to collect and ship the waste to TerraCycle. TerraCycle pays for shipping and donates $1 for every pound collected to Keep America Beautiful's anti-cigarette litter program. “We run the recycling program, host the website, and promote the program,” explains Albe Zakes, TerraCycle's global VP of media relations. “Our goals include driving sign-ups and participation and informing the industry of the advancement in cigarette waste recycling.”

Pack It Up The #1 best way that you can green your lunch is to pack it. Instead of using plastic or paper bags, you should choose a reusable lunch box. Why? According to the EPA, children who bring a bag lunch to school every day create about 67 pounds of waste by the end of the year! If you can imagine how many children are in school and how many people work every day, that’s millions of pounds of brown bag waste.

Here are a few reusable lunch boxes that are great alternatives to bags: TerraCycle Drink Pouch Lunch Box, ACME Cotton Recycled Lunch Bag, Vy & Elle Lunch Bag, Mini Bento Stainless Steel Lunch Jar.

Mathis, a sixth grader at Nightengale Elementary, asked principal Mrs. Jordan’s permission to get started. With a little help from his mom and from his sixth grade ELA teacher Mrs. Powers, Mathis created flyers that he put up around school asking students and staff to save their of empty CapriSun pouches.   “There is a blue bin in the cafeteria – kids put their CapriSun pouches in it and then my mom and I collect them, take out the straws and make sure they are flat. Once we have collected a full bin, we ship them to TerraCycle,” Mathis said.   TerraCycle, a green company, upcycles and recycles hard-to-recycle waste such as juice pouches, Solo cups and chip bags. Removing these items from the waste stream reduces pressure on landfills.

Earth Day falls on Monday, April 22, this year, and Old Navy has partnered up with trash-to-treasure eco company TerraCycle to turn old, used, or broken flip flops into material for playgrounds. TerraCycle was founded in 2001 and has since become one of the fastest growing green companies in the world. According to TerraCycle’s website, their purpose is to eliminate the idea of waste by recycling one man’s trash into another man’s treasure. Started by 20-year-old Princeton University freshman Tom Szaky in 2001, TerraCycle has diverted billions of units of waste by turning them into different recycled products with more than 20 million people in 20 countries participating worldwide.

MASSENA -- Inspired by the back of a beverage, a Nightengale Elementary student has launched a campaign to help his school and the environment. Mathis LeBlanc, a sixth-grader, said it all started while he was downing a CapriSun. Reading the back of the packaging, he learned he could earn money for his school and help the environment by recycling his juice pouches. LeBlanc told his mother that he wanted to launch a school-wide recycling effort, sponsored by the juice company. With a little help from his mom and from his sixth grade ELA teacher Mrs. Powers, Mathis created flyers asking students and staff to save their of empty pouches. “There is a blue bin in the cafeteria – kids put their pouches in it and then my mom and I collect them, take out the straws and make sure they are flat. Once we have collected a full bin, we ship them to TerraCycle” said LeBlanc. TerraCycle, a green company, upcycles and recycles hard-to-recycle waste such as juice pouches, solo cups and chip bags. Removing these items from the waste stream reduces pressure on landfills. TerraCycle weighs LeBlanc’s pouches and sends him a check. LeBlanc has chosen to donate money from the juice company to Nightengale Elementary’s student council. Once the pouches are cleaned and sorted, they are ready to be repurposed into backpacks, pencil cases, and lunch boxes. Any pouches that are too dirty to be upcycled and are shredded and compressed to be made into new materials.