E-Waste and recycling

I was searching for places to recycle my old electronics. I don't know how we got these computer parts, but they are taking up space, and they need to be recycled. They are certainly out of date, and the technology so slow that you would fall asleep between load times on any project. I found that in Australia they have set up a great e-waste recycling program that keeps some of the hazardous materials found in obsolete electronics out of the land fills. I think it is a great program, and they accept a large variety of e-waste, from computers, to dvd players, and everything in between.
Waste management is important all over the world, but waste management in Australia, I think would be really important. They have limited space, and I am sure that the landfills are just as unsightly there as they are in the USA. I really like the thinking that if we can keep stuff out of the land fill we could have less of them. I hope to see E-waste recycling programs popping up from Australia to Zimbabwe. From residential to industrial there are things we all can do to reduce, reuse and recycle making this place we call home a better place for all.

Great video about recycling

When we moved in I inquired about how to recycle here. Our town has a single stream recycling program, and it is awesome. We can recycle so many things, and we throw it all in the same bin.
Interesting how it works. I found this video that shows how the products get separated, and what happens after that. I like this video because it makes the process simple to understand. There are a few chapters to follow so sit back and watch the process unfold.
ENJOY!

Crafty Recycling

In the afternoons, I come up with crafts for the children in the extended day montessori program at my school. I try to incorporate the eco friendly ideas that I hold so dear. My latest project that was greeted with smiles and excitement was a journal for each child. I collected the empty snack boxes from our snack, in this case it was Nilla wafers. I cut them to size of a half sheet of our "oops" copy paper. Then proceeded to punch two holes in each piece of paper and the cardboard. The kids decorated the cardboard which became the front and back cover for their journals. After the covers were just right they threaded the paper on to 2 pipe cleaners. The kids were having so much fun, and were saying things like "wow, I have never done this before". That is very fun for me to hear. It is nice when I can tell they are really enjoying the afternoon craft. Then at the end of the day they got to take their journals home, and keep them as a notepad, or drawing pad. It is a great way to recycle the snack boxes, and copy paper.
Now I have to come up with some more eco friendly toddler crafts.