“If you just leave your bag of garbage by your front door I’ll stop by and grab it on my way to work.” This probably isn’t something most people Facebook message their friends about at 10:00 at night. But, not only is this really a message sent to me from a friend a few nights ago, but I also really did run and, excitedly, pull a bag of garbage I’d been saving for her out of the closet and set it by my front door.

Students at a Michigan elementary school are raising money for their school, while keeping hard-to-recycle materials out of the waste stream. It’s called “upcycling” and at West Ottawa’s Pine Creek Elementary School, it’s becoming part of the school’s culture. “One of our focuses is incorporating environmental education into our curriculum and raise kids’ awareness,” said Principal Dave Gough. “We wanted to think about how we can problem solve and have a positive impact at the same time.” The school’s efforts are run through TerraCycle, a company that finds new uses for trash, turning otherwise unusable waste into things like coolers, picture frames and cleaning supplies. Students, teachers and staff members collect things like food wrappers and juice boxes and turn them over to TerraCycle, which transforms them into other, usable items.

TerraCycle Jun 10th, 2011 by Sarah Awhile back I received a press release from TerraCycle about reducing the burden of energy bar wrappers: Recycling the Non-Recyclable: TerraCycle Works to "Leave No Trace" on the Earth TRENTON, New Jersey - May 18, 2011 - This summer, instead of throwing out their garbage, hikers and park-goers have another option for their non-recyclable trash after they pack it out: sending it free of charge to pioneering company TerraCycle(r) to be recycled. TerraCycle collects people's trash and recycles the non-recyclable into eco-friendly, affordable, and practical products. The "leave no trace" policy, which has evolved into the "pack it in, pack it out" policy of taking all your trash out of the park with you, is furthered by TerraCycle's Brigade(r) program, through which people can send in difficult-to-recycle food wrappers for recycling and upcycling and earn cash for charity. Usually, wrappers from products including Kashi, Bear Naked, CLIF BAR, and Revolution Foods, among others, are non-recyclable. TerraCycle upcycles some wrappers into tote bags, coolers, notebooks, laptop cases and mini-speakers.  Wrappers that aren't upcycled are melted down and turned into plastics such as trash cans, flower pots, and clipboards. The snacks that hikers use while enjoying the outdoors can become eco-friendly, long-life products that support the environment that hikers are enjoying. Instead of just leaving no trace on the parks, hikers and outdoorsmen can also leave no trace on the Earth. Anyone can sign up for TerraCycle's Brigade programs and send in their wrappers for free. For every wrapper TerraCycle receives, two points are awarded that can be put toward buying a specific charity gift, or converted to money and donated to a charity of the participant's choice. Most importantly, the Brigade will be keeping these wrappers out of the local landfills and off the ground. So far, TerraCycle has kept over two billion pieces of trash from leaving their mark on the Earth, and with its partners, dispersed over $2 million to charity through the Brigade program. For more information on how to sign up, send in trash and earn extra cash for your favorite school or charity, visit www.terracycle.net ~Sarah

Though recycling is not a new trend, many people are unaware that most objects are un-recyclable. This means that the traditional recycling method is too costly and inefficient to properly break down items such as chip bags, juice boxes, shampoo bottles, yogurt containers, candy wrappers, pens, butter tubs, and more. TerraCycle is a breakthrough company that intends to recycle the formerly un-recyclable. Now, anyone can sign up for the TerraCycle campaigns and send in their trash to be converted into new products. The best part, besides doing something good for Mother Nature, is the money anyone can receive from TerraCycle for donating their trash. The company reports to collect one million juice pouches every two to three days and returns $0.02 per pouch to the donator. By collecting and sending items that would normally end up in the trash, sewer, or ocean, they are able to help create products such as park benches, messenger bags and backpacks, fences, picture frames, just to name a few of more than 260 products feature on their website. TerraCycle does not actually make new products, but instead acts as a supplier to manufacturing companies that would normally use virgin material.

I recently joined TerraCycle’s Brigades. If you are not familiar with TerraCycle, you can read more about the company at www.terracycle.net. TerraCycle started out selling compost in used soda bottles and now upcycles a number of products into backpacks, messenger bags, notebooks, trashcans, watering cans, benches, pavers, and much more. I believe this can be a great way for New Leaf Market members and friends to work together to develop a sense of community while achieving a positive result. We have signed up for five brigades, collecting packaging from Kashi, Elmer’s Glue, Malt-O-Meal cereal bags, candy wrappers, and personal care and beauty products. Most items collected and sent to TerraCycle are worth 2 points. Points can be redeemed to buy clean water, meals, plant trees, and adopt land. You can find more details about what we can recycle with TerraCycle at the Green Bay TerraCycle Brigade’s web site.

It’s hard to imagine that anyone would get excited about sorting trash. But each Friday, the third graders at Newtown Elementary School beg to do just that. In fact, they like it so much that they forgo recess just to sift through used drink pouches, chip bags, and snack wrappers. There is a reason for their enthusiasm. The students are recycling for TerraCycle, a Trenton-based company that accepts certain types of waste to make products like bags, picture frames, toys, trashcans, and more. Best of all, the school gets money in return for the products they send in to recycle. The school began its effort in October, after parent Kathy Skalish learned about the initiative. “I’m a recycling junkie,” Skalish said, adding she worked with the school’s administration to make the program happen. So far, the school has collected more than 8,350 drink pouches, which TerraCycle uses to make tote bags and backpacks. They’ve also collected more than 4,200 snack bags and more than 450 Ziplocs, which they’ve just begun recycling. In return for their efforts, TerraCycle gives them 2 cents an item, or $260 since October. TerraCycle bins are located throughout the hallways and in the cafeteria.