Reusable Gift Wrapping

Gifts are given to celebrate special occasions throughout the year. Birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, graduations and religious holidays are all special occasions that are enhanced by gift-giving. Each of these gifts is carefully wrapped in all types of materials, with paper being the most popular. Once the wrapping paper is ripped open to reveal the gift inside, most often, the paper is discarded in the trash can. Even the beautiful bow is frequently thrown away. Gift wrapping materials are, for the most part, considered to be disposable. But with our landfills growing, our natural resources waning and the cost of everything increasing, the concept of reusable wrapping is very appealing.

Recycle Now offers a great idea for reusable wrapping. Furoshiki is a Japanese style of wrapping. As recyclenow.com explains, “Furoshiki is a fun and creative style of gift wrapping using a large piece of cloth to create elegant looking presents. The good news is, when the present is unwrapped, there’s nothing to be thrown away!”

Watch the video so you can start Furoshiki wrapping for your next special occasion!

Tell us what you think!

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK – TV shows, local government videos, social marketing outline

1. New local government recycling and solid waste video from Rutherford County

2. Garbage Moguls Reality TV show on Planet Green

3. Plastic Bag Mockumentary created by Heal the Bay

4. Community Based Social Marketing how-to video – It’s homemade but clearly identifies the steps to social marketing. You can now freely download Doug McKensie-Mohr’s book – Fostering Sustainable Behavior on-line.

5. ABC News reports about Cleveland’s recycling program which, includes RFID tags and fines

Tapped - Part 2 in My Movie Trilogy

A couple of weeks ago I saw the movie Tapped at N.C. State’s enviro-movie series. It was good. It covered almost every topic surrounding plastic water bottle usage. Just to mention a few:

Container issues -
- Plastic bottles are made from petroleum and oil refineries can be very harmful to a local community.
- Harmful BPA plastic is found in hard water cooler containers
- Floating oceanic garbage patches are full of plastic like that found in the North Atlantic Gyre
- Bottle bill states and their high recycling rates were mentioned. However, only six of the 11 bottle bill states include water bottles in their legislation.
- In response to this issue, some places are removing water from vending machines. I’m not sure if this is the correct message we want to send regarding our public health.

Water issues -
- Recent droughts required citizens to conserve water, but water bottling companies had no such restrictions. You’ll see local N.C. elected officials and environmental groups discussing this topic.
- Tap water is tested daily; however, bottled water is a self-regulated industry that doesn’t have to publicly release its water testing results.
- Marketing for bottled water makes tap water seem unsafe or impure.
- The FDA does not oversee any bottled water plants that do not include interstate commerce laws.
- Only half of a person’s job at the FDA oversees this industry.
- It’s all about who controls the water. Our laws need to reflect the greater good.

My take-away – drink water from the tap, if you can. Bring a reusable container with you, if you can. Drink from a plastic bottle (if you must) and recycle it, if you can. This brings up the issue of convenience – Please carry your water bottle to a recycling bin. It might be more difficult than throwing it away, but it is very important!

One last thing – I am looking for a collapsible cup or jug that will fit in my purse. Kind-of like a fold-up cloth bag (i.e., Chico bag). Know of anything?

Look for my write-up of “No Impact Man” soon.

Wasteland, The Movie

This week I've been a movie-going fool. Not just any movie - environmental documentaries.

This weekend I saw “Wasteland” at Durham’s Full Frame Film Festival. The movie took place at the largest landfill in the world outside Rio de Janeiro. This movie was similar to Garbage Dreams which was filmed at a landfill in Egypt. The similarity between the two movies was that each landfill had a community of people that lived near it and picked recyclable material from the face of the landfill.

Rio does not have any sort of curbside collection program for recyclables. In Wasteland, the pickers collect 200 tons of recyclables per day from the landfill. The pickers only pick material that has value that day, so as markets change, they pick different material. These folks work day and night picking recyclables from the working face of the landfill. Each picker has to pay $30 (one time fee) for their barrel that they drag around to collect material and get paid about $25/day after selling the recyclables. Rent to live in the community near the landfill is $8/week. It’s quite different than the U.S. living wage.

The 3,000 pickers have an association that helps train them. The movie follows the lives of a couple of the association members. One older gentleman that has worked in garbage for more than 30 years said exactly what I have said so many times, "[O]ne can, bottle, piece of paper can make a difference." However, his slogan was "99 is not 100." Meaning even one piece of recyclable material has value. One woman actually cooked meals for the pickers, from the face of the landfill, using food that was discarded.

In comparing our recyclable collection methods with those from the movie, I can’t really say one is better than the other. I think a merge of the two systems would be perfect. Why don’t we try to pick out recyclable material from the face of landfills in this country? Danger of getting hit by a truck? The smell? The public health concerns? Couldn’t we address these items and find a work-around? I suspect the real reason is that there is money to be made by putting garbage in the ground. We need to show that recycling is more beneficial!

Oh, and I forgot to mention, these real-life characters are just part of the movie. It also follows Vik Muniz, a prominent modern artist. He creates some very wonderful, heartwarming pictures using discarded material from the landfill and helps the pickers see their real potential

If you get a chance to watch this movie, I recommend it. It made me tear up.

We are partnering with the Reuse Alliance to screen another enviro-documentary called “No Impact Man”. Join us on Monday, April 26, at 7 p.m. on N.C. State’s campus, New Jordan Hall, Room 1218 to watch this movie for free.

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: Local Government Recycling Videos

Does your local government have a recycling video? If so, please share it. Check out these other N.C. local government recycling videos.



-Salisbury

-Pinehurst

-Greensboro

-Cumberland County

-Mecklenburg County: Click on “Why Recycle” video on right hand side

-Greenville

VIDEO: Garbage Dreams

I recently heard of another documentary about recycling and trash. Go figure. The Green Movement has hit the big screen. “Garbage Dreams” has won 17 awards and a location is being sought to screen the movie in N.C. Working Films in Wilmington is helping to market it.

So what’s it all about?

You can view the trailer here.

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: Sesame Street

My coworker, Wendy, found these great Sesame Street videos about recycling, litter and the environment. Remember these?
Recycling Aluminum Cans – A little dated, but good.

Mayonnaise Jar Recycling – Brings in the idea of reuse also

Keep Nature Clean – Featuring Cookie Monster

Box City Recycle Rap – This is really more about reuse

Don’t throw your trash – Ernie sings about litter

Earth Rocks – Featuring Paul Rudd

Do you know of some other children’s recycling videos? Share below.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: The Bottle Bank Arcade Machine

This video link came from Pete in Cabarrus County. Pete recommends this tactic as a great social marketing behavior change tool. What do you think? Communities that have bottle deposit programs and return their recyclables to a reverse vending machine will enjoy this.

Video Introduction:
Many of us return our plastic bottles and cans. Noticeably fewer recycle their glass. Maybe that's because we don't get any money in return, as we do for cans and plastic. Can we change this attitude by making recycling glass fun to do? So you are not just rewarded with a good conscience, you also get a smile.”

VIDEO OF THE WEEK – Benjamin Zander

A few weeks ago I was in a class about project management and our professor showed us this excellent 20 minute video from a conductor, Benjamin Zander. It is, of course, about music but my professor was able to show how elements of it also related to project management. There is an underlying theme of leadership throughout the video. I was thinking during the exercise how it also relates to social marketing. He talks about how to get more people (than the current three percent) to listen to classical music. Sounds like behavior change to me.

Here are my comments from the video and tell me what you think in the comments section.
- We have to keep the faith that our GOAL will be accomplished.
- The conductor doesn’t have to speak to lead a group to its goal. We can lead by example.
- Believe in empowering others to the cause. The public CAN make a difference.
- Have the end result in mind and understand the small results that get you toward the end goal.
Leadership is getting people to do something they WANT to do. By being leaders we can cause behavior change.

New commercials

We are creating some new commercials for an older demographic (35-55). Below are the themes and scripts. Your thoughts?

Jobs Commercial -
Intro: Recycling sustains more than 14,000 jobs in N.C.
Speaker 1: Paula Hoffman, FCR
“Our facility recycles material from throughout North Carolina. I have a job educating about recycling.”

Speaker 2: City of Raleigh employee
“I’ve been collecting recyclables for four years. Thank you for participating in your curbside program.”

Speaker 3: Mylinda Jacobsen, Envision Plastics
“Thanks to recycling, Envision has doubled its workforce since opening in 2001. Thanks for your support.”

Tagged to RE3.org:
“To find out more about how recycling creates jobs go online to RE3.org.”

Cycle commercial -
Intro: "The materials you recycle come back to you in the form of products you buy every day. Putting your recyclables in the collection bin and then buying recycled products keeps the cycle going - creating jobs, saving energy and protecting the environment."

Speaker 1: Step 1: Collection – Mecklenburg County
"The recyclables you drop off at your local convenience center is step one of the recycling cycle. Thank you for doing your part!"

Speaker 2: Step 2: Processing - Green Fiber
"We receive your old newspaper and turn it into new cellulose insulation which is step 2 of the recycling cycle."

Speaker 3: Step 3: Recycled Content Products – Home Improvement Center
"After your old newspaper is turned into new insulation it is distributed to your local home improvement center. Do your part and purchase products with recycled material to complete step 3."

Tagged to RE3.org:
“To find out more about the recycling cycle go online to RE3.org.”

Recycle Glass Day – December 10

RE3.org is a proud supporter of the first Recycle Glass Day. As part of Recycle Glass Day, the Glass Packaging Institute conducted a YouTube video competition. Participating packaging sciences students from Cal Poly, Clemson University, Michigan State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, San Jose State University and Stout University of Wisconsin, created videos to help build national awareness about the benefits of glass container recycling to save energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and better the environment.

Watch the videos and rate your favorite!
Celebrate Recycle Glass Day on December 10th.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK – RecycleBank

RecycleBank launched The Cycle, an interactive animation developed to help answer the question of “What happens to my recyclables after I put them out and they are collected?” It takes viewers through each step in the cycle: from recycling collection to processing to manufacturing new products from recycled material. The interactive piece is available both on recyclebank.com in the recycling section (http://www.recyclebank.com/recycling) and also via a standalone site at http://www.explorethecycle.com.

I watched this video and would highly recommend it for middle school students, high school students and adults. It has lots of pros:
- It can be downloaded
- Explains how commingled recycling is separated
- It is broken up into chapters and
- It is unbiased towards any commodity.

“Recycle” Film by Abu Amar

Taking a simple premise, the daily life of Abu Amar — an ex-mujahideen, now a cardboard collector in Zarqa, Jordan, the slow-boiling “Recycle” was a hit at San Sebastian Festival’s Cinema in Motion and then at Dubai, impressing audiences and critics by its ability to develop into a resonant tale about broken dreams and Middle Eastern poverty. A summary can be found here.

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK – Current TV – Social Media

Mashable.com
22-year-old web entrepreneur Pete Cashmore founded Mashable.com, a blog about Web 2.0, as a teenager in Scotland. Now the site brings in "seven figures" and Pete has been named one of the “Top 25 Web Celebs of 2007” (Forbes). Moving to San Francisco to capitalize on the social networking boom, Pete hits the streets to network with CEOs of local startups like Bebo and Digg.



Social Networking Wars -
Think social networking sites are fun and useful? See what happens when things get a little out of control for one social networker who might just be “over” the whole social network thing. Let the social networking wars begin!

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: RE3.org "Mobsters" Commercials

Did you know RE3.org has a small “series” of commercials with a mobster as the main character? Check them out below.

Mobsters 1


Mobsters 2

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: Hulu

I haven’t posted any video links in awhile, however, I found this great site called Hulu. It compiles video from TV channels and movies into one place on-line. So all you have to do is search “recycling” and you get lots of cool episodes about recycling.

The Biggest Loser – Saving the Environment
http://www.hulu.com/watch/3679/the-biggest-loser-week-nine---saving-the-environment


Days of our Lives – Alison Sweeney Goes Green

The Tonight Show – Earth Day

Jerry Springer Goes Green

History Channel – Garbage – Plastics Recycling

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: Social Marketing Examples from NC

Did you know we have another YouTube account besides RE3.org? And no, it isn’t Recycle Guys either. NC DPPEA has a YouTube account where we post videos of local government reps talking about how they have used social marketing techniques to increase recycling.
- Newspaper Ads as a form of commitment
- Block Leader as a form of norms
- Truck Ads as a form of communication
- Award Ceremonies
- Shelf Talkers for point of sale marketing

Plastic Info, Video and Web sites

Is it just me or have plastics, of all kinds, been in the news lately? Between plastic bag bans, plastic Nalgene bottles that are toxic and industry’s need for more recycled plastic resin, plastic is all over the news.

The Judge Parker comic strip, created by Harold Ledoux and Woody Wilson, featured a series of comics (from Nov. 12, 2007 to Nov. 16, 2007) about the impacts of plastic bottled water production. Click the image to the left to enlarge it.

Here are some other plastic tidbits that might come in handy.
- Paper vs. plastic bags

- Plastic tubs vs. plastic bottles

- Floating plastic island

- All plastic bottle campaigns increase collection

- Does it cost more to recycle a plastic bottle than to make a new one?

- NPR story about PET plastic

- NPR story about bottle bills

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK – These will make you laugh.

-KAB Man
-Funny recycling and squirrel video similar to RE3.org's “Longing Can”
-Patagonia Underware Recycling Program (I think this guy strives to be KAB man)
-Save the World action figure video
-Japanese recycling commercial

VIDEO OF THE WEEK - "Making Paper"

Think about all the paper we use in our daily lives - the morning newspaper, a cereal box, construction and notebook paper, the paper bag that we use for our groceries and recyclables - where does it all come from? How is it made? How much of it is recycled? A new video on the http://paperrecycles.org Web site highlights the paper making process while also featuring students making their own paper in the classroom, based on a standards-based activity created by Project Learning Tree. Visit the site and watch the video today to learn more about this essential part of our everyday lives.