Recycling at Work

Does your workplace or school recycle? Over a year ago, my employer did not have a recycling program in place. It wasn't until someone I worked with was recommending everyone watch the film Al Gore is known for, An Inconvenient Truth, that I was able to bring up the question - why weren't we recycling at work? The idea of implementing a recycling program was rejected in the beginning due to various costs, people putting trash in the recycling and a list of other excuses. So we got permission to bring our own recycling bins to work as long as we were the ones who emptied them.

For about a year we had three recycling bins and a few people who would take turns bringing the recycling home to put in their own bins that were picked up by the city they lived in. My point is, just because the opportunity is not there or the service is not offered does not mean you should give up what you believe in. There were other people within the company who began to take their recycling home as well.

Eventually a company-wide recycling program began and a committee was put together to address other ways we could be more environmentally friendly at work. Every employee was issued their own mug to cut back on the use of styrofoam cups. A ride-share or carpooling program began for those who wanted to cut back on the cost of gas or reduce their carbon footprint.

Just talking about this to my family and friends made others realize that their workplace was not recycling either. I had a family member take some bins to work and put in place a recycling program too! Since it is a chain of stores it started to catch on at more stores and people were taking responsibility to make those small changes to help make a difference.

What are small changes that you can make at your work or child's school to encourage recycling?

Posh Pouches

On my search for other ideas for waste-free lunches I came across the website for Posh Pouches. I love this idea of having a reusable bag instead of using all the little plastic baggies. I like to have all of my food items separated so before my Laptop Lunch Box arrived I counted using SEVEN plastic baggies for lunch and snacks in one day, yikes! I can't believe I had used so many. The next day I used four more. It really started to hit me how often I use plastic bags when I could be using a reusable container instead.

Once I really started to read everything on their website I was in shock at what I found. One of the external links referenced something called the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. I had never heard of this. I started to read more about it and could not believe that our garbage is just floating around in the Pacific Ocean. The pictures made me feel sick and the video by Good Morning America just pushed me over the edge. I really need to make more changes. I was recycling but all the plastic I was still using had to be cut back, big time. It was one of the main reasons why I started to think about beginning the blog as well. I was talking to all my friends and co-workers and no one else had ever heard of this either. I needed to get the word out and started by posting the link on Facebook and hosting an online party for the Posh Pouches.

I love the Posh Pouches since they are portable and I like to carry snacks around in my purse. They can be washed easily in the washing machine or by hand and then line dried. They are sturdy and seem like they will last a long time. I think they are great for wet or dry foods due to the liner inside the pouch. They have three sizes and tons of fabrics to choose from. Check out their site to learn more!

Waste-free Lunches

I am a professional adult who works full-time at a large corporation. I have to tell you one of the highlights of my work day is lunch. :) I found out about these lunch boxes from a friend and once I saw them I just HAD to have one. It is a bento box style lunch and the lunch box itself is cute, colorful, easy to use and clean up, has built-in portion control; but what I love the most is that when I am finished with my lunch I have absolutely no trash to throw away. It seems odd to say that but everyday the trash cans are so full after lunch we are all shoving our trash in there trying to make it fit. The first day I took my new lunch box I was able to just stand up and leave. :) It was a great feeling.

The lunch box I purchased was from www.laptoplunches.com. It is a great purchase for any age. It keeps me motivated to continue cooking healthier meals instead of getting lazy and picking up lunch in the cafeteria or ending up with fast food. The Laptop Lunches website even provides you with lunch ideas each week to help keep you trying new foods and methods of preparation. The lunch box comes with silverware and if you order a carrying case you will also get a reusable drink bottle. You can order additional containers for the inside of your laptop lunch as well in case you have a busy night and need additional time for clean up. I have even packed a kitchen towel in my carrying case to use as a napkin everyday so I truly have a waste-free lunch.

There is an additional link on the Laptop Lunches website that gives more information and statistics on waste-free lunches, www.wastefreelunches.org.

Each lunch seems like art when you are finished so I jumped on the bandwagon and started taking pictures of my lunches too!

Homemade egg rolls and rice, edamame,

applesauce and then a luna bar for my snack.

Sara Snow

I don't have cable but I finally heard about Sara Snow's TV show on the Discovery channel. I still haven't seen an episode but I did go out and buy her book, "Fresh Living". The book goes room by room through a home with ideas on how to make changes to help the environment. I am still only on the kitchen chapter and already have a list of ideas I would like to start incorporating to my daily life.

Until I started reading her book I had no idea what CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) was about and that I had so many local resources for fresh produce, grass-fed beef and other organic products. CSAs allow you to buy fresh vegetables, fruit, herbs, beef, dairy and even breads directly from the farmers. You pay a certain amount up front at the beginning of the growing season and then you pick up your box of produce each week from a pick up location. Everything is fresh and organically grown!

To find local farmer's markets, CSAs and other local resources go to www.localharvest.org and search in your zip code. I am considering joining a CSA when the next season starts if I can find one with foods I enjoy. In the meantime, I am going to try out a farmer's market that is near my home. I can't believe it was this close and I never knew it!

Getting Started

I believe that small changes can make a big difference. I grew up in a home where I was taught about Earth Day, recycling and getting involved in your community. Once I was older, I believed that everyone cared about the environment and recycled. Recycling seems so easy to me that I was very surprised when I found out that there are so many people not doing it. The worst realization was that some of the people not recycling were my own friends and co-workers!

I am now on my own mission to increase what I am doing for the planet and encouraging others to do so as well. I know there is so much more that I can do to help; many small changes to make a bigger difference.