Free Refills on Your Water – TapIt

We all know that the use of disposable water bottles and coffee cups is on the rise and out of control. If you’re reading this, you probably already have a snazzy reusable water bottle and mug that you haul around to lessen your contribution to the landfill. Unfortunately, when we’re out and about, it can be difficult to find a place to refill your bottle. Some cafes and restaurants will turn you away from using their water if you’re not a paying customer.

And if you live in a big city, public restrooms and sanitary water can be a rarity. The TapIt water bottle refilling network is an attempt to make it easier to refill your water bottle so you don’t have to pay for water (something that used to be free!). Founded in 2008, TapIt is working with cities to map out places of businesses that have agreed to provide free tap water refills. Several businesses sign on as partners and these partners can be found on city maps. Have an iPhone? There’s an application to let you know the nearest TapIt partner location.

According to TapIt, they are “. . . not just about going bottle-less; less bottles, less recycling, less water privatization and extraction,A it’s about understanding why those things are a problem and finding new and sustainable 21st century solutions.” They also claim to be advocates for health, since sugary drink substitutes are often what people will succumb to if unable to find free fresh water.

So far, New York City is the only city available, but TapIt is working hard to coordinate with other cities to make the TapIt project a reality across the nation.

You can learn more at http://www.tapitwater.com/

Green Books for the Young and Young Adult

Guest blogger Jennifer Ochs is a freelance writer. She currently conducts book reviews and author interviews for her weblog NY Book Cafe. In addition she is a freelance manuscript reader, editor/proofreader.

“Generation Green: The Ultimate Teen Guide to Living an Eco-Friendly Life”, by Linda Sivertsen and Tosh Siversten – Simon & Schuster, August 2008

Generation Green is a practical guide for green living today. Particularly geared towards teens, this book provides various ways in which all of us can make small changes in our lifestyle which can lead to big changes and promote a better world. The theme of the book is that individual change can cause collective change for a brighter and better tomorrow.

This book provides many useful tips as well as resources. From recycling to marshland preservation, many environmental issues are discussed. Linda Sivertsen wrote this book along with her 18 year old son. Therefore, the information presented is very user friendly, promotes environmental consciousness and is overall a good read for all ages.

“Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug”, by Ellie Bethel – Worthwhile Books, March 2009

In this addition to the Michael Recycle Books, Litterbug Doug lives in a green town. However, he leaves his garbage everywhere, he is lazy and doesn’t clean up after himself. Michael Recycle, the caped crusader, seeks to show Litterbug Doug a better way of living to promote a greener environment. In this installation to her Michael Recycle books, author Ellie Bethel conveys a good message to the young reader.

Home Staging: It Gets Results and It’s Green

Despite the down economy, home stagers are busier than ever, as today’s realtors insist that staging is the most cost effective way to maximize home sale profits. It also happens to be one of the most sustainable ways to attract buyers.

Home staging is not tasteful decorating. In fact, when potential buyers walk into un-staged but tastefully decorated homes, the personal style of the existing homeowner distracts them from envisioning the space as a home of their own.

Home stagers, like retail display designers, aim to enhance a product’s appeal. Although the scale is different, the principles are the same: maximize the space, eliminate distractions and increase the traffic flow.

Sustainable Ways to Successfully Stage Your Home

Approach the big purge with mindfulness and commitment.
De-cluttering is an essential step that cannot be missed. Homeowners usually find this phase of the process tiresome, tedious and frustrating but it is a critical one, nonetheless. Trimming ship is the first step towards punching up profits. I advise my clients to reduce everything on display by half and then to recycle unwanted items by selling them or donating them. Three worthy, tax-deductible recipients are Goodwill, local homeless shelters and the public library. Also keep in mind that animal shelters and vets love used linens!
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Biogas from Sewage and Landfills, Glamorous No but a Renewable Yes

In the last of the “Mad Max” movies, the one that prominently featured Tina Turner, Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome, the post-apocalyptic world depended on “pig sh*t” for energy.

That idea, albeit the invention of a Hollywood screenwriter, may not, however, be as outlandish as it might originally appear. In India, for example, there are myriad small methane producers throughout the country that produce just enough methane for home uses, using small methane generators powered mostly by cow dung.

In September of 2008, San Antonio, Texas set into motion an ambitious plan that would make it the first US city ever to convert sewage into methane gas on a large scale. The plan calls for the complete recycling of at least 90% of the approximately 140,000 tons a year of “biosolids” produced by the citizens of San Antonio into water for agricultural irrigation, solid compost and now, methane gas, which will be used for the generation of electrical power.

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The Campus Green: RecycleMania!

“Leeeeeeeeeeet’s get ready to RECYCLEEEEE!” We’re not talking about wrestlemania, but RecycleMania!

RecycleMania, a competition across the nation, is a benchmarking tool for college and university recycling programs to promote waste reduction activities to their campus communities. After 10 weeks of fierce competition, the results are in! The title of “Grand Champion” goes to California State University, San Marcos. In this short span of time, 510 different schools from all 50 states, Washington D.C., and Canada collectively recycled or composted just over 69.4 million pounds of waste. Now that’s a lot of party clean-ups. With 4.7 million students and 1.1 million faculty and staff participating in the mania, the word is definitely getting out about reducing, reusing, and recycling across college campuses.

So how did the mania begin? In February 2001, Ed Newman from Ohio University and Stacy Edmonds Wheeler from Miami University decided that something had to be done to increase recycling in the residence and dinning halls on their campuses. (Miami won that first year). This friendly competition between rival schools gradually evolved into the national college recycling craze it is today.

RecycleMania is not only a great way to gain bragging rights for your school, but also very important in raising awareness about waste management and recycling. Colleges are basically small cities that consume a lot of resources and generate a lot of waste. RecycleMania helps schools realize their potential to reduce both the amount of resources they consume and dispose of. The competition educates students about campus environmental programs and instills in them a love of recycling they can keep for life! And this just proves that recycling can be super fun. Besides helping the environment, what else could motivate students better than beating their biggest rivals in competition! Ultimately though, every school’s efforts contributed to amazing results for the environment and in the end, we’re all on the same “green-team.”

To see the final results in all categories and learn more about RecycleMania check out http://www.recyclemania.org/

The Campus Green: Today’s Universities will Ensure a Greener Tomorrow

Going green is becoming all the rage at colleges and universities around the nation, and we’re not just talking about the Cal-Berkley’s of the world. I should know, since I’m a part of the growing crowd of environmentally-aware young adults! Our institutions of higher education are increasingly providing environments to foster critical thinking and creativity in sustainability with new course offerings and majors. Better yet, our exposure to new media and social networking provide access to the information and social “cool” factors necessary to drive eco-friendly actions from our future leaders.

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Electronics Recycling Guide 2009

Did you receive a new TV, computer, or cell phone for the holidays? Don’t just throw away your old devices! Recycling electronic items is critical for preserving landfill space and for ensuring that hazardous materials used to make electronics are properly disposed.

Here is a list of resources to help you get rid of your old stuff in a safe, efficient manner.

Online Cellphone Recycling Programs

Provider Cellphone Recycling Programs

Manufacturer Take-Back Programs

Retailer Take-Back Programs

Sell Your Stuff Online
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