We’ve all heard about spring-cleaning, but what about pre-holiday cleaning? That should be a thing, too! After all, with the holiday season right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to clear out your old stuff and make way for the new—and it might even make your space feel larger. Yes, even when the in-laws are visiting.   But before you start chucking things in the waste bins, consider this: Today is National Recycling Day (there's a day for everything, isn't there?), the perfect time to declutter and give your stuff a second chance for someone in need.   So if you're in the mood to end the year with a clean(er) slate, check out these tips on the best ways to get rid of your stuff and declutter with a purpose this holiday season.  

1. BOOKS

  If your home library has started to overflow in a way that can no longer be considered a style choice, then it might be time to downsize your collection. But instead of trashing your old books, give them away to someone in the community.   “The best way to recycle books is to donate them to a charity or institution of your choice,” says Antonia Korcheva, creator of Escape Waste. “They might enrich someone else’s life. Search for libraries, schools, retirement homes, or prisons near you. Theaters also accept old or damaged books as they can use them for props.”   National organizations like Operation Paperback will also help you make sure your old books wind up in good hands.  

2. CLOTHES

Much like your unwanted books, getting rid of old clothes can free up a lot of space in your home and help someone in need. Any clothes that can still be worn should be donated to organizations like Goodwill or the Salvation Army. Look for drop boxes near grocery stores and in mall parking lots.   For clothes that can’t really be worn anymore (anything torn or ratty), consider recycling them.   “Each year, an average of 80 pounds of textiles per person end up in landfills,” says Laura Durenberger, owner of Reduce, Reuse, Renew. “Finding a recycling option is a great alternative.”   Organizations like American Textile Recycling Service and Recycle Now both accept textile donations for recycling.   “If your clothing textiles are made from nonsynthetic materials (think 100% cotton, linen, wool, silk, hemp, etc.), then you can remove any tags, buttons, or zippers and compost the fabric yourself,” adds Kait Schulhof, founder of A Clean Bee.  

3. APPLIANCES AND FURNITURE

Old appliances and furniture take up a ton of space, but you can’t (or shouldn’t) just toss them in the garbage.   “Many old appliances have freon and other hazardous chemicals, so waste disposal sites just won’t take them, says Amos Mallett, owner of Duke's Junk Recycling, in Austin, TX. “To recycle furniture, items have to be broken down to separate out the materials that can be recycled, and most waste disposal sites don't take the time to do this, and just send it to the landfill.”   If your old furniture or appliances are still in working order, you might consider giving them away to friends, or even just leave them outside with a “free” sign to see if anyone in the neighborhood wants them. (Just make sure to check your local city or town ordinances, since many have rules about what can be left on the curb.) Otherwise, use this free online search tool to find the nearest facility that will actually recycle them.  

4. E-WASTE

Americans get rid of 7 million tons of old electronics, or e-waste, each year, according to Jeremy Walters, sustainability ambassador for Republic Services. That adds up to about 42 pounds per person.   Get your 42 pounds of old phones, laptops, and other electronics out of the house this season by donating or recycling them.   Many local charities can make use of working devices, Walters says. He points to two national programs: Cell Phones for Soldiers, which provides free airtime minutes to service personnel, and the 1Million Project, which helps connect low-income students to the internet.   For things that will never work again (like your Game Boy from the '90s—sorry) check out this mail-in recycling program from Republic Services, or find a local drop-off site for your old electronics using sites like TerraCycle.  

5. TOYS

This one is especially relevant, considering the season. Unwanted toys have a way of taking up a lot of space in our homes—even long after anyone has a use for them. But someone still might, as Kaelyn Lee of Toycycle reminds us.   “We sell quality pre-owned toys and baby gear, and offer free shipping on many of them,” she says. “Building sets, STEM toys, books, infant toys, games, and baby gear. It’s a great way for people to rid themselves of those unwanted items that may be another person's treasure.”   Get started decluttering your home this holiday season by selling unwanted toys and baby gear to Toycycle, or consider donating them to charities like Toys for Tots.

Laney Crowell has tested practically every beauty product under the sun. The industry vet banked more than a decade working with big brands like Estée Lauder before starting a blog dedicated to nontoxic living, hence the extensive makeup and skin-care trials. Her next chapter? Launching Say, a clean beauty company.   “Did you know that Sephora only carries eight clean makeup brands?” Crowell asks. (We did not.) “There are so few on the market because it’s really hard to formulate them—let alone luxury, high-performance clean makeup.” Say is the sweet spot: The ingredient list is free from all harmful additives; the price is right (everything is under $25); and the packaging is a pastel-colored, Instagram-worthy delight. Plus, it goes without saying, 100 percent recyclable.   Right now, Say offers only a brow gel, lip balm, mascara, and lash curler, with plans to roll out a mascara subscription service in the next few days. This tight product curation allows the company to nail each formula—and it makes a case for simplifying your makeup drawer to the bare (all natural!) essentials. You don’t need 15 mascaras; one quality one will do the trick.   “My advice when it comes to decluttering is to be honest with yourself about the last time you used something. If you’re using it, keep it! If it’s been a year and you haven’t touched it, it’s time to recycle it,” says Crowell, recommending Terracycle. Unopened Saie products can last for up to 36 months, but if you’re planning a mass overhaul of your vanity and aren’t sure what to toss, we asked Crowell for her help:  

Lip Balm

“Most lip balms, like ours, are anhydrous—not made with any water—so there’s less of a chance for bacteria to build up. I replace after a year.”  

Mascara

“Mascara is something you should change out more often; personally, I get a new one every two months. If its smell changes or it starts to dry out, it’s time.”  

Brow Gel

“Since brow products aren’t directly applied to your eyes or lips, you should determine if the formula has changed, but six months is generally when you should replace them.”    

ORLEANS -- This winter, when he’s not fishing, Tom Smith will spend time in his backyard replacing some of the webbing in his nets.   The nets he uses to catch bluefish are 500 yards long, and he switches out a section of them every year.   “I actually enjoy it. It’s like winter therapy,” said Smith, of Orleans.   Later this winter, or maybe this spring when Smith is back on the water feeling the bite of the wind, he can take satisfaction thinking about someone being cozy and warm on account of electricity generated from his derelict nets, after they’d been processed and burned at an energy-producing facility.   It starts when Smith rolls up his derelict nets, like bales of hay, and takes them to the Provincetown Transfer Station, where discarded fishing gear is picked up as part of the Fishing for Energy Program.   The program started in 2008 as a partnership between the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, looping in Covanta Energy Corporation and Schnitzer Steel.   Kaity Goldsmith, manager of marine conservation at NFWF, said the program has hauled in more than three million pounds. Some is retrieved directly from the ocean by fishermen because abandoned or lost gear can entangle marine mammals and sea turtles or become a safety hazard for fishermen and other mariners. Other gear is collected on land, in ports across the country.   “The program started in New England because historically those are some of the oldest fishing ports in the country. At the time we started the program, there were also some active NGOs and ports that NFWF had been working with around the topic of right whales and so we knew those ports and those fishing communities. Also, in the New England region, fishing companies tend to be smaller and could use support for funding disposal of fishing gear. So once we entered the New England area, we expanded from there,” Goldsmith said.   Josh Pelletier, transfer station manager in Chatham, said he believes the program started in his town because the harbormaster’s department wanted to make sure there was a place for old gillnet gear.   “It’s a convenience for fishermen,” Pelletier said, adding that it’s free.   Chatham will take most everything – including clamming baskets – as long as it’s related to fishing.   “Basically what this does, in conjunction with Covanta, is keep it out of our waste stream, which is what we want,” he said.   Not all the gear from local fishermen goes to a transfer station. Some captains have relationships with contractors, mainly in New Bedford, who take old nets away.   But Wellfleet has also been a long-time member of the program, with the amount of gear being carted away ranging from 43 to 48 tons over the last several years, said Mike Cicale, the transfer station manager.   “We always fill up our four free dumpsters,” he said.   “Wellfleet is kind of unique because we have so much shellfishing,” he said. “Best to get the gear out of the harbor.”   Cicale said if they didn’t have the program the town would have to charge disposal fees and that would get pricey. They take the plastic netting that spat is grown on and other plastic materials; oyster racks go in the metal pile, which the town makes money on.   “The fishermen are really cooperative about it,” he said. “It’s a good program for Wellfleet.”   There are other efforts that take the program in new directions. Laura Ludwig, marine debris and plastics program director at the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown, is involved in a program that proactively locates and collects “ghost” fishing gear from the ocean and often deposits it in the Fishing for Energy bin.   “Those bins are providing a really great service,” she said.   Previous removal efforts conducted in Cape Cod Bay by the Center and fishermen from local ports have recovered more than 31 tons of lost, abandoned or derelict lobster, gillnet, dragger, trawl and recreational fishing gear, including 780 lobster traps.   To handle the bulk of that recovered gear, Ludwig has partnered with Nauset Disposal, which provides dumpsters as part of their sponsorship of the program. The Fishing for Energy bins come in handy when the sponsored effort expires.   What Ludwig also tries to do is take the gear out of the waste stream entirely.   She collected rigid plastic off local beaches and shipped three massive salt bags to TerraCycle in New Jersey, which works with Proctor & Gamble, now marketing shampoo in beach-friendly, upcycled bottles. Some of the bags were filled rigid pipe and seed trays taken from the Wellfleet flats.   “That is another way of diverting it from the waste stream,” she said.   Goldsmith said they try and help those initiatives if they are able to.   “Over the years we have had conversations with people interested in using fishing materials for creating all kinds of items, such as picnic tables, gear tackle boxes, mats, dog collars and leashes, etc. We applaud and love these innovative ways to reuse gear and oftentimes we are able to connect the small business with ports in their area to have conversations around the material supply and demand. So we make those connections where we can, but it’s not part of our waste stream,” Goldsmith said.   In the meantime, the gear that is collected through Fishing for Energy will continue to power homes in the region.   Approximately one ton of derelict nets equal enough electricity to power one home for 25 days, Goldsmith pointed out.

Well timed for National Recycling Day, which is today, Tom's of Maine has begun shipping a first-of-its-kind recyclable toothpaste tube recognized by the Association of Plastic Recyclers. The tube is designed to be compatible with the #2 HDPE plastic stream. Toothpaste tubes typically haven't been recyclable because most are made of a mixed material that doesn't have a second life and has to be landfilled. The #2 plastic continues to have a strong recycling stream and is the same material used in most laundry detergent bottles. The new Tom's of Maine recyclable tube is designed to be circular, so that the material can be re-processed into new products and packaging. "We're thrilled to offer a first-of-its-kind recyclable toothpaste tube that's been recognized by the Association of Plastic Recyclers, which sets the standard for North America. There is no oral care or personal care tube on the market with this APR recognition," said Esi Seng, general manager at Tom's of Maine. "We're already hard at work engaging with The Recycling Partnership and their network to communicate with recycling centers and win their acceptance of our recyclable tube. We're proud to be blazing a trail for other toothpaste brands to follow," Seng added. Tom's of Maine Antiplaque & Whitening Peppermint Natural Toothpaste will be the first variant in the new tube, available on shelves in the coming weeks, with all full size Tom's of Maine toothpastes in the new recyclable tube by the end of 2020. "When it comes to recycling, shoppers interested in natural products are also more committed, active participants in working to keep waste out of landfills," said Julie Sprague, stewardship manager at Tom's of Maine. "This is another commitment we're making as a company guided by a rigorous set of standards called our Stewardship Model, which ensures we're operating sustainably and responsibly every day. Taking care of the planet is a goal we all share and this exciting launch is a new way we can work together in this ongoing effort," Sprague added. To recycle the tube at home, consumers should check the back of their tube for the blue "flag" that tells you what to do: once empty, replace cap and recycle with #2 plastics. Tom's of Maine tubes without the blue flag haven't yet transitioned to the new recyclable material. Recycling practices vary by municipality and if a town doesn't accept #2 plastic, the Tom's of Maine Natural Care Recycling Program, a partnership with TerraCycle, is a recommended option for recycling all personal and oral care packaging regardless of the brand. Tom's of Maine, which is part of Colgate-Palmolive, recently became a Certified B Corporation.  

Henkel has partnered with TerraCycle to launch the free Schwarzkopf Recycling Program in the United States. The program, which is slated to begin January 1, 2020, will allow U.S. consumers to recycle all Schwarzkopf retail hair care, color and styling products, through TerraCycle’s recycling platform. By recycling products through this program, U.S. consumers can earn points which can be redeemed for charitable gifts or converted to cash and donated to a non-profit, school or charitable organization of their choice. How It Works When the program launches, consumers will be able to collect used packaging from purchased Schwarzkopf products, and when ready, download a shipping label from the TerraCycle website to mail in for recycling. Once received, the packaging will be cleaned and melted into hard plastic that can be remolded to make new recycled products. “Until now, the recyclability of hair color and styling products was difficult due to product packaging needs and the requirements of curb-side recycling programs. Through the TerraCycle program, we’re proud that Schwarzkopf retail products will now be 100% recyclable,” explained Manuela Emmrich, marketing director, Hair U.S., Henkel Beauty Care. Henkel has been partnering with TerraCycle since 2016. Earlier this year, Henkel and TerraCycle teamed up to create a free recycling program throughout Canada for Henkel’s Sunlight and Purex brand plastic detergent pouches. Henkel’s Adhesive Technologies business unit also launched a partnership with TerraCycle for customers in the U.S., making it possible for them to recycle their used adhesives packaging instead of sending them to a landfill or incinerator. The Schwarzkopf and Henkel Adhesive Technologies Recycling Programs are available to any interested individual, school, office, or community organization in the United States.

Australian-born, New York-based makeup artist, Sam Addington is committed to the idea that beauty is more than skin deep. She has painted some of the world’s most well known faces like Saiorse Ronan and Brooke Shields for publications like Vogue, ELLE, and Harper’s Bazaar. While her minimalist aesthetic appears effortless, it belies her considered, health first, holistic approach to beauty. Addington talked to us about how she created The Frontlash November cover Nikki Reed’s beauty look using her tool kit of non-toxic skincare and make up products, her path to becoming a makeup artist, and what beauty means to her.   Did you always want to be a makeup artist?   I initially wanted to be a fashion designer. When I graduated from high school I went to art school for a couple of years, and trained in fashion textile and design. It was during that period that I discovered Kevyn Aucoin and discovered that being a makeup artist was a profession that one could pursue. So I quit art school and I moved to Sydney and trained there for a year.   Do you have any advice for anyone who wants to pursue a career as a fashion and celebrity makeup artist?   I mean, now is so different from when I first started. When I first started in 2000, there really wasn't any other avenues to promoting yourself other than having an agent. You could have a business card, and these really analog ways of promoting yourself, getting your name out there and getting traction with clients. But I think now with social media, everyone can take control of their career pathway, in a way, in the creative fields, anyway.   I still think there's some value in doing [runway] shows and assisting [more established makeup artists]. Although, having said that, I never did that. I never assisted anyone and I didn't really do any shows outside of directing my own. But I think there is some value in working under other people, and seeing what they do and how they do it, and then running that through your own lens and working out how you might be able to do it—in a way that expresses the story or the narrative that you want to tell.   Ultimately I think the only way to have a career is if you really stay true to what it is that is your style.It comes down to stories. Who is this person and what should they do and why are they wearing a red lip and why should they be wearing bronzer? So number one rule, build a portfolio, I think is the way to go, and develop your own style.   Well, that kind of brings me to my next question: what's your creative process when you're working with, I guess I'll start with a celebrity client. Because I know a celebrity and a fashion client is different. So what's your process when you're working with a celebrity?   In some ways it's not too dissimilar, the fashion and the celebrity process. Ultimately it all comes down to having a sense of everyone in the room has their own agenda. Everyone has something that they need to sell or promote. And so that kind of informs how the model or the celebrity should look or want to look.   Celebrities tend to have much more say on how they would like to look, depending on what their relationship is, say, with their publicist or perhaps it's their stylist who might interject and have a very strong vision for how they should look. Whereas a model just has no say typically, and it's all about how the creative director or the client pictures how they look.   What does beauty mean to you?   I really think beauty is a feeling. It's not so aesthetic. It's sort of like a sensibility, I think, more than anything else. The way in which somebody holds themself, or the way in which somebody walks perhaps, or speaks. Oftentimes for me, I find somebody attractive based on what they have to say, and if they can articulate what they have to say in a really engaging way. I like quirk. I like there to be a point of interest.   Health is also very beautiful to me. If somebody looks healthy, if their eyes are bright, their skin is clear, their hair is shiny, they have some color and some life to their skin, then that'll always beautiful to me.   When you are working with someone, applying makeup, how do you foster trust so that the person you're working with feels comfortable? Because you’re in an intimate space with them and sometimes you don’t know them well or at all.    That's a good question. It's probably not something that I necessarily have cultivated. I don't have a routine, it's probably just who I am as a person. I think that it's like when you meet anyone you don't want to be too intrusive, you need to be respectful, you need to have an understanding, and a respect of the fact that you are in this person's personal space. It is a very intimate thing.   I think it's just about projecting or letting that person know in some way that they're okay with me, that we all have our faults and we're all here to make them feel as beautiful and comfortable as possible.   And you can utilize that charming [Australian] accent of yours as well.   Yes. Although some people can't understand what I'm saying, but, yeah. I think I've also been lucky in that because I started so young, I was like, 19, 20, I wasn't that much older than a lot of the models I was working with and as my career has progressed, I'm now 40, a lot of my clients tend to be my age now. So, I have an understanding of where they're coming from and  who they are as people. And that's the thing, you've just got to strip it down to the fact that we're all people, and we all have our hang ups. We all have our wants and desires, and we all have our favorite things that we like, and things that we don't like.   What are some of the ways that we can be more eco-conscious when it comes to beauty or makeup?   Well, I think the important thing is to understand that it's not just about makeup or skincare products. There's so many other things that we use on a daily basis that you could also take into account. So whenever I work now, I make sure that I'm using cotton swabs and baby wipes that are biodegradable and that come in either biodegradable or recyclable packaging. There's so much waste involved with that, so I'm really quite conscious of that given you use far more cotton swabs in your lifetime than you do lip stick, say, so I try and be conscious of that. Tissues are the same, I now use only tissues that are derived from bamboo, so they're treeless, they're sustainable and they break down quicker.   But when it comes to eco-friendly, when it comes to skincare and makeup, you can be conscious of the ingredients that they're made of, there's a lot of toxins, common toxins in skin care and makeup. So you can go to the extent of using clean or nontoxic products, or at least trying to eliminate [toxins in your products] as much as possible.   And also you need to be wary of the packaging that they come in, and be wary of what you do oftentimes. You don't necessarily need to throw them into the trash. You can take your containers to, like Credo, for example, these clean beauty retailers that have TerraCycle programs, so you can send your empty containers and they will have them recycled for you, and you know that they're actually going to be recycled, and that they're going to be repurposed into other products, and for other uses.   It can be a little overwhelming, and confusing too I think, when it comes to being eco-friendly. For example, I have a filter on my shower head, so I don't have chlorine or chlorine off gassing when I wash my face and my hair and things. There's so many things, it is a little confronting. But I think there are definitely ways you can reduce your impact, profound ways, even if you do it incrementally.     Can you talk me through the makeup you did for Nikki Reed, the process and some of the products?   Well, for this particular look, because it was very natural, I really focused on skin care first and foremost. She arrived already with makeup on from a previous event so I used a cleansing oil to remove all the makeup, including the eye makeup, then I used micellar water after that. I'm a big fan of hyaluronic serums. Hyaluronic acid is a really great skincare ingredient. It's moisturizing, it's plumping, and it's a really great way of building moisture into the skin without necessarily applying any kind of oil or other kinds of moisture products that could interfere with the makeup.   So I used a Susanne Kaufman hyaluronic serum. I then a Biossance moisturizer, but it's a gel moisturizer and it's just super light, and it has squalane and probiotics in it. And I used Biossance eye gel, which I'm a big fan of. It's loaded with peptides and it's really good for reducing any puffiness or signs of stress or fatigue.   I used a basic lip balm after that. And then just as a side note, when she left set I gave her some Ursa Major face wipes. Then afterwards I used an illuminating primer, just a little bit, just a couple of drops, to add a little bit more luminosity to the skin. And then I followed it with the Kosas tinted face oil, which is super, super light. It is an oil, it has a pigment to it, the oil seeps into the skin and then just leaves a little pigment on the surface. So it's good for evening out [the skin complexion] rather than it looking like a foundation. The reason I like this is because it doesn't have a greasy or an overly dewy feel. It looks more like natural skin, I think. Then I used the RMS Un Cover-Up just for under eyes and any blemishes.   I used the Kjaer Weis glow as an illuminator on the high points of the face, the cheekbones, the bridge of the nose, and the bow of the lip. And then I used the RMS Buriti bronzer on both the cheeks and the eyelids, just kind of create some structure and add some color to the face without it being too colorful. Then I use the Westman Atelier Eye Love You Mascara, just I curled the lashes and just used a little bit of that Mascara.   Then I used a Kosas lip color in a shade called "undone", just by pressing it into the lips rather than using a brush, rather than lining the lips, I just used that. And then I used the RMS "Un" Powder for any areas that were catching too much light. For the body, I used the Weleda body lotion, and also the Skin Food body butter.   I use a Dr. Bronner's hand sanitizing spray, by Humankind cotton swabs, Seedling by Grove tissues, they're made from bamboo and sugarcane, and then the Naturacare baby wipes, which are both biodegradable and compostable.   And that's it. I mean, it's a lot of products for such a simple look, but from a photographic point of view, it helps to have a little extra.  

Benches, tables, waste stations and an agility ramp will help train guide dogs for the blind or visually impaired.

As tradicionais buchas de cozinha, que utilizamos para limpeza de louças e objetos, são feitas de plásticos como poliuretano, um material de difícil reutilização. Para se ter uma ideia, nenhuma pesquisa conseguiu definir o tempo de decomposição desse produto, mas especialistas estimam que o período gire em torno de 100 anos ou mais.

Lately you may have seen the words zero waste on your body lotion (and if that’s the case, we applaud you). It’s a growing trend within the beauty industry, and as someone who has spent the better part of a decade reporting on such matters, it’s the trend I am most excited about.   To get a better understanding of what this term actually means, I spoke to Tiila Abbitt, the CEO and founder of Aether Beauty, a sustainable makeup company that launched the first zero-waste eye shadow palette in the makeup industry.   "Zero waste means making sure nothing ends up in a landfill," explains Abbitt. "That can mean a few things: One is that a product is reusable, another is that it can actually be recycled." (I’m going to interrupt here briefly to drop in that oft-quoted National Geographic stat about how 91% of plastic ends up in landfills.) "And on that note, it’s making sure there is no packaging or packaging waste. The main idea is to limit what actually goes directly in your trash."   She concedes that "this idea can be intimidating because people think they have to completely switch up their entire lifestyle," but this isn’t about perfection. "We don’t need a few people creating a zero-waste lifestyle perfectly. We need millions of people trying their best, thinking more about their own footprint and making better choices with the goods they are purchasing, however imperfectly, to make a difference." In sum, it’s not an all-or-nothing affair.   So, how do we do this? "Look for products that have less waste, are package-free or are fully recyclable. And avoid single-use items like face wipes and cotton rounds," shares Abbitt. We’re also fans of Garnier’s partnership with TerraCycle, which processes plastic for you and turns it into earrings and benches and more, and brands like M.A.C and Lush that offer new products in exchange for empties. And beyond carefully choosing your beauty products, start bringing reusable items like shopping bags, coffee mugs and water bottles, utensils and metal straws with you for when you are out and about. OK, now who’s ready to shop some of our favorite sustainable beauty products?                      

We have all been told to “reduce, reuse, and recycle” at least once in our lives. Those three magic words have always made it seem easy to help keep the planet clean. However, rising recycling issues mean the U.S. has to change its strategies toward waste, according to a new State of Recycling Survey conducted by U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund.   The report brings an honest interpretation of the current state of the recycling industry and just how many levels in which it is faltering. Especially since countries in Eastern Asia have started to refuse accepting recyclables from the United States, according to media reports. In a press release from the Public Interest Network, which operates more than 15 organizations including the U.S. PIRG, several states have been “failing to both reduce unnecessary waste and to adjust to a changing recycling landscape.”   According to Alex Truelove, U.S. PIRG Education Fund Zero Waste Program Director and report co-author, the main thing he wants people to take away from this report is that it is going to take multiple facets to fix the waste problem.   “We can't rely on recycling alone to fix our waste problems. Our systems were not designed to process many of the items we dispose of — single-use plastics in particular,” Truelove said. “To truly achieve a zero waste society, or anything close to it, reducing our waste and transitioning toward more reusable materials have to be the priorities moving forward. Recycling plays a role, but it should be a last resort, after reduction and reuse.”   At the 2019 Planet Forward Summit, Tom Szaky, the founder and CEO of TerraCycle, addressed how recycling is not enough in solving the waste problem. It is also going to take clean-up efforts and rethinking single-use items in its entirety.   “Recycling is the solution to the symptom of waste but not the cause of it,” Szaky said at the Summit. “It's not plastic that's the problem it is using all this stuff once.”   Truelove offers what he thinks needs to be done in order to solve the waste problem.   “A mix of good public policy and corporate action. From bottle bills to single-use plastic foam bans, we know better policies can reduce waste and drive corporations toward better practices,” Truelove said.   “We also know that meaningful corporate actions can influence the market and lay the groundwork for better policy. We need more of both," he said. "Consumers cannot be expected to move the market alone, we need to enable them to make better choices."   Policy change is another area that needs work to help correct the problem, according to Truelove.   “There are also opportunities to work with other countries to establish international laws and better practices, like ‘prior informed consent.’ In other words, agreeing to divulge what materials we're sending to other countries,” Truelove said.   Even though there are still plenty of materials that are being exchanged on the global market, Truelove said, plastic continues to be an issue.   “Plastic is the outlier, and I don't envision that market recovering because plastic — especially disposable plastic — remains low-value and hard-to-recycle. That's why we need to reduce our use of single-use plastic, first and foremost,” Truelove said.