Do you know why they are in that order? Because reducing and reusing are more efficient than recycling. If you can figure out a way to not use something at all (reduce) it is better than reusing it or recycling it. Same with reuse (use that plastic that your olives came in to store your leftover falafel), and as a last resort you recycle it.
In this way you manage the waste stream from the highest efficiency down. Reduce overall production of waste, reuse what you can’t reduce, and then recycle what is left (in my perfect world there would be no “throw away” option). We have done a fair job in this country of stressing recycling. While this is great, it is not perfect. Americans seem to be alright with the idea of throwing their “trash” into a different waste bin marked recycling. That is not really a change of habit, just a lesson in aim. What is really hard to do is the reduce and reuse part. That requires an actual change of habit, buying less of something, pressuring a company to change its packaging, or figuring out crafty ways to reusing things. I would love to see another wave of public service announcements promoting reducing and reusing.
This can mean composting, it can mean building products that are designed to be reused or recycled, it could mean building products that will last for years and years without needing to be replaced. Or it can mean this.
I love these guys, they are always coming up with great ideas. Next time I move I am going to make all my furniture out of cardboard and see how it works.
What are your ideas/experiences with reducing and reusing? Have you figured out how to build everything you own out of old dryer lint? Have you managed to reduce your plastic intake to near nothing? Let us know!
The cardboard chair has been a yearly competition from AIAS (American Institute of Architecture Students) for awhile now. Here’s the link- some of the chairs are just beautiful: http://www.aias.org/chairaffair/
Three simple words, that are not that easy to execute as we all know.
My big focus has been on buying only what I absolutely need. As the urge to shop slowly leaves me, it is becoming less and less hard. It helps that I blog about the stuff for several hours every day . . .
Still, without external structures and support, my belief is that consumerism will continue to run wild. There needs to be consumption taxes, incentives for lesser consumption, and on a larger scale, a complete overhaul of our economic system. We need to move to a ‘zero-carbon’ based economy.
http://lamarguerite.wordpress.com
I really need to change. I went from being long term unemployed to having a job and credit. I am making up for years of consuming.
But I made my own microphones case from an old metal file box with handle that was thrown out by a neighbour. Inside I put the styrofoam from am over packed stereo system after that foam had been cut and holed with a knife. I used layers of foam and the case now holds six microphones. One microphone was getting old, so when a friend said on her facebook status that she needed a microphone I offered it to her for much much less than a new one. The microphones are not getting much use anyways. One way of reusing is selling something you are not using. Also one can loan out stuff to friends to use if it is just gathering dust.
I don’t even bother to mention recycling in my ‘R’s now:
REDUCE
REPAIR
REUSE
RESPECT
Recycling is for when you can’t do anything else with it, but sometimes recycling is worse than landfilling(!).
Thank you for promoting reuse. It is a totally misunderstood and underused enviromental, economic and charitable activity. May I suggest that anyone looking for ideas about REUSE take a look at “Choose to Reuse” a book I coauthored. It is the only comprehensive guide to this subject ever written. (Don’t buy it take it out from the library – one of the best reuse strategies ever devised.) Thanks, David Goldbeck HealthyHighways.com