One of the group's major projects, in which the community may participate, is collecting juice pouches and chip/snack bags. Rather than dropping them into the trash, they are gathering them to earn money through a company called TerraCycle, which is an international upcycling and recycling firm that collects difficult-to-recycle packaging and products and repurposes the material into affordable, innovative products.

Terracycle founder Tom Szaky studied Economics at Princeton, so in his presentation he was able to give a plethora of sound economic reasons for why their take-back programs work. They began in 2001 by selling worm poop in old soda bottles. Now they have a full host of recycling programs, from special ashtrays for collecting cigarette butts to be recycled into industrial plastics, to school-based programs for collecting juice packs from children to be recycled into anything, or flip-flops into playgrounds. His presentation made it all seem limitless, the things we can do with used plastics. A company just starting out in the space was THREAD, which buys plastics from collectors in Haiti and hopes to expand their reach to other developing countries. Read more at http://cleantechnica.com/2013/06/08/theres-a-fortune-in-your-trashcan-sustainable-brands-2013/#WvGsxkvG1BO4SbwW.99

Recycling was a big topic at Sustainable Brands this year. More specifically, how brands are making money out of trash. A perfect storm of forces has coalesced to make recycled plastics more viable than they used to be, and sometimes more viable than virgin plastics. A persistently weak economy, a generation growing up with terror of environmental collapse, and the passion to do their best to prevent that, and “waste” becoming more plentiful than crude oil. William McDonough’s pioneering work in Cradle to Cradle is finally heading into the mainstream. Here are some highlights of what other companies represented at Sustainable Brands are doing to clean up the planet’s massive waste dumps: Terracycle founder Tom Szaky studied Economics at Princeton, so in his presentation he was able to give a plethora of sound economic reasons for why their take-back programs work. They began in 2001 by selling worm poop in old soda bottles. Now they have a full host of recycling programs, from special ashtrays for collecting cigarette butts to be recycled into industrial plastics, to school-based programs for collecting juice packs from children to be recycled into anything, or flip-flops into playgrounds. His presentation made it all seem limitless, the things we can do with used plastics. A company just starting out in the space was THREAD, which buys plastics from collectors in Haiti and hopes to expand their reach to other developing countries.

WASHINGTON (WUSA) -- We all know that recycling our paper, plastic, and glass is important for the enviornment. But what if I told you that you that recycling certain items could earn you some cold hard cash? Investopedia gives us three things that you can recycle for cash back or a tax deduction: 1. Gift Cards.  We all have received that gift card for a holiday gift or birthday present that we feel like we will never use. If you have one of these lying around the house, Gift Card Rescue is a service that will take your unused gift card and send you a check for it. If you have a gift card that you have used up or it's outdated gift card, Gift Card Recycler will take those and give you points for the number of cards you send in. 2. Cooking Oil.  It may seem odd, but there are several recycling centers, bio-diesel firms, and individuals that will pay you for your used cooking oil. Prices range from 33 cents to 66 cents a gallon. 3. Trash. TerraCycle is a company that will pay you for your garbage. A program that works best with schools of non-profit organizations, TerraCycle will donate money to your cause for every piece of trash you send the organization, and they will even pay for shipping. We're talking candy wrappers, juice boxes, ink jet containers, old cameras -- that kind of thing.

MENALLEN TWP. — Menallen Elementary School has taken this school year to learn to value and respect the environment through recycling. Its efforts in a recycling program called TerraCycle resulted in the school placing among the top 50 schools in the nation. “We’re very pleased with the turnout from the community with the recycling program,” said Principal Paula Work. “It all comes back to our theme of respect. Respecting our planet, respecting our place on our planet, respecting our school, respecting others.” The TerraCycle recycling program started at the school three years ago. Students collect various waste products to be recycled and, in turn, receive money for the school. Products such as snack chip bags, juice pouches and fruit cups from each lunch period are recycled. Various other recyclables, including paper products and plastic wrappings, are brought in from the students’ homes. Each product is given a dollar value (about 2 cents per item) by TerraCycle and, when collected, the efforts add up to the school’s total. Menallen was ranked 36th in the nation.

Students and staff at Bain Elementary School raised more than $3,700 for the school through the TerraCycling program. The program allows schools to collect items like juice pouches, wrappers, empty glue sticks and writing instruments and submit them for recycling. The school collected more than 114,000 juice pouches and more than 19,000 chip bags to earn $3,749.38. To learn more about the program, visit www.terracycle.net.

BCE Team Green was named a finalist in the Florida Green School Awards sponsored by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The team has implemented recycling initiatives at the school, which have reduced trash consumption one-third. Members have raised more than $400 for the school through efforts to recycle juice pouches and chip bags in partnership with Terracycle. The team also has raised money for the nonprofit organization Charity Water, which builds wells in developing countries. The statewide winners will be announced during an awards ceremony Nov. 10 at the West Palm Beach Marriott.

PTAs often combine fundraising efforts with service to the environment or community.  For example, Debra Johnson, president of Weyanoke PTA, has garnered funds through the collection of juice pouches and chip bags.  Sent to Terracycle.net to be “upcycled” into items like tote bags, they earn a few cents each.  The used flipflops they’ve collected will be turned into playground material. For Lisa Keyes and her PTA at Columbia ES, their efforts include helping families in need. “Some of the community events we are involved in are sponsoring a school supplies drive for families in our community, participating in a food drive to help stock a local food pantry, a coat and hat drive for our community,” she says.

TerraCycle has turned juice boxes into purses and is looking to recycle diapers. But today, the Trenton company is focused on collecting trash and helping a Bucks County school make money.