Recycling Encouraged via Post System
May 24, 2006 at 12:18 pm
The UK’s major recycling site – recyclenow.com has joined forced with Royal Mail to produce the first ever cancellation mark showing the sites logo and web address.
The cancellation mark can be seen up by the stamp on your letters and is printed as the letter goes through the sorting machines to show the stamp has been used – or cancelled.
This is a huge effort to make people aware of the site and indeed encourage them to recycle at home and will hopefully have a great effect, as letters with the stamp on should fall through between 6 and 7 million letterboxes each day. The campaign has been running since the 8th May and will continue until 18th June so look out for the recycling stamp on your post.
Rubbish Needn’t be a Dirty Word!
May 19, 2006 at 12:55 pm
I’d love to take credit for this slogan but it does in fact belong to the creators of Junkk.com. Haven’t heard of them? Well listen up. If you are interested in novel new ways to conserve resources and be more environmentally friendly then this is definitely worth a look.
So what is the idea of Junkk.com? Well, do you ever empty a container, packet, box etc and think to yourself just as you are about to throw it in the bin “hmm, this is too nice to throw away really, what else could I use it for…?” I know I have done it before and hoarded items, sometimes reused, but often not. Here’s where Junkk.com comes in. You may have found the perfect use for that empty cereal box and want to share it with the world or you may be stumped at what to do with that funky chocolate container and need some inspiration.
Reusing is an important factor in reducing the amount of waste we throw out and conserving the earths resources. This site highlights the fact that so much effort is sometimes invested in making packaging look good so why not take advantage and continue enjoying the design and functionality by making a new use for that ‘waste’ item.
So, you can browse Junkk’s idea section to find out how to make a woggle out of a bottle top or a set of dumbbells out if a couple of empty malteser containers and you can submit your own creations too. There is also plenty of items on there with a reuse idea required so get if you are feeling creative about an empty bottle, jar or well designed packaging then have a browse and add your idea.
Inviting the Worms to Stay
May 3, 2006 at 9:39 am
How would you like the idea of nearly 2000 earthworms sharing your kitchen space?
Martin Bartos, Scotish Green Party member commented how his resident worms ‘really aren’t any bother’. He’s refering to his wormery – a simple and efficient way of converting kitchen waste into compost and liquid feed – all you need to do is throw your left over peelings and used coffee in and the worms do the work.
Nearly a third of our household waste is organic and so can be recycled in this way, so if everyone had a wormery at home or in the garden the amount of waste going to landfill would be dramatically reduced.
You may be thinking, is it complicated or pricey to set up a wormery at home but it really isn’t. There are commercial wormerys on the market, but you can just as easily make your own using cheap plastic storage boxes and a few extra items available from the DIY store as illustrated here.
This size wormery may be more suited to your garden or an outside space but if this is not available, there are smaller options which can sit on your windowsill and you can even improvise with something such as an old fishtank or small dustbin.
Green living is no longer reserved for hippies and duty bound Green Party members, everyone shold be environmentally aware. Living in a confined space within the city also shouldn’t mean that you opt out, you just have to improvise. Its not all about having your own energy sources or having land to grow your own vegetables, there are ways everyone can adapt.
Make a wormery, take your glass, tins and paper to the recyling bank or put out for collection and reuse household items where possible. Our recycling in the home factsheet will remind you of all the simple ways you can live a greener life.
