Recycling - The New Shopping

Imagine the buzz of acquiring a coffee table you have been pining (pun intended) for over several weeks, the one you have studiously kept an eye out for whenever you’ve been on-line during the past few days. Imagine the excitement of finding one that could possibly be perfect for your needs and the anticipation of exchanging emails to secure the deal and arrange a convenient pick up time from the location which is, of course, a mere stroll away. Picture yourself viewing your potential prize for the first time, casting furtive glances over to it as you meet the current owner, ensuring that this is the one you want to give a new home to. You note the marks of character and signs of a well used and cared for piece of furniture and share a few details of the object d’art’s past and possible future.

Can you see yourself taking the item home, placing it carefully in your desired location, giving it a clean or a lick of paint and making it yours? Imagine knowing that not only has your recent ownership of this beautiful table not caused any distress to the environment or taken a penny out of your dilapidated wallet but, au contraire, your newly found possession has dispersed happiness onto the person who’s hands you have taken said item off and, of course, to you as you spend hours in admiration of your recycled find.

Compare this to shopping for a new coffee table. You re-arrange your schedule to fix a suitable time to shop but let’s face it Saturday morning is all the time you have spare. So you wake up early and make your way through the weekend traffic and crowds of deliberately meandering people (it seems everyone else likes to shop early on Saturday mornings too, ho hum!) to the shop (or shops) of choice (did you choose them or they choose you? Hmmmm). After spending several hours or more roaming the isles looking for the perfect item amongst the myriad of choices, all of which seem blander by the second, you find yourself pushing through the crowds at Ikea or trying to catch the eye of the disappearing sales staff at John Lewis.

And then you find one, the coffee table you think you want. Does it match up to expectations? Is it really better than all the rest you’ve seen? It’s a bit over budget but you can just about stretch to it if you forego the grocery shopping for a few more days. Can you get it delivered? Is it too big to carry to your car/bus/train? You’re about to call someone over to seal the deal, when you think, Oh, whoops, what about the environment? What is this delightful piece of furniture made from? Is the wood sustainably sourced? Was it put together in a sweatshop style factory? Does it carry a taint of someone else’s suffering? Hmmm, no information about any of this on the label. Is it worth asking the staff who look like they might relish the bemusement? Suddenly the piece de resistance doesn’t look quite so inviting anymore. And you can’t really afford it anyway. But it is nice, compared to that one over there and the one you saw in Argos so maybe you should just buy it? Just do it quickly, now!

And then you imagine taking it home, placing it in front of the sofa, sitting there, tentatively glancing at it underneath the Sunday papers full of headlines screaming about global warming, articles on the disappearance of another rainforest and stories detailing the lives of poor factory workers employed by big multi-national companies like the one you are standing in, strewn across the pages. It’s time to leave the store before your panic turns into meltdown - agh!

With Freecycle, WhatsMineIsYours and the other host of swap sites on line, the plethora of charity shops on and off the high street, plus the knowledge that brand spanking new is NOT always best (except when it comes to underwear - bleugh!) you too can experience the ecstatic buzz of recycling instead of the misery of shopping for yourself. Why not try it this weekend?

Forums:

In the forums this month there is a link to Waltham Forest’s Recycling Project - FRP in Links - London Recycling Links and we look at some exciting sculptural lighting & furniture designs in Recycling Stories - Awesome Recycling Designs. There is also news on Urban Canvas which takes place on 31 July at New Street Square, London when recycled CDs will be made into a temporary, evolving street installation - check it out and get involved!

Meanwhile, over in the RecyclingCDs blog (see below) you’ll find info on Stuart Murdoch’s re-creation of Bristol suspension bridge from used drinks cans as part of Recycle Week. There’s also a link to a Recycle Now article revealing that, although our household recycling rates have doubled over the last 5 years, there is still much to be improved upon including the items that we often forget to recycle.

As always, your views are more than welcome on these and any of the other topics on our forum boards and blog. If you’re not already a member (what are you waiting for?!) simply sign up to the forum here and share your ideas with the rest of us. A thought kept to yourself, particularly one from a high calibre mind such as yours, is a wasted one!

Networks:

Get in touch and stay up to date with RecyclingCDs on Facebook and MySpace as well as our blogand website. If you would like to help us spread the recycling word feel free to add one of our banners to your own site or blog. Check our Links page for codes.

Until next time, happy recycling and enjoy the sunshine!

From Rache & All at RecyclingCDs

In the UK we currently recycle 33% of our household waste, which is almost double the amount recycled five years ago. And the amount of household waste recycled or composted in England has tripled from 57kg to 157kg per person.

Source : http://www.wrap.org.uk

Bristol’s Clifton Suspension Bridge has been created out of thousands of cans.

Artist Stuart Murdoch was commissioned to create the sculpture to mark the start of Recycle Week and raise awareness of recycling.

The artwork is one of four iconic aluminium sculptures which have been unveiled to encourage more consumers to recycle their cans and bottles.

Recycle Week has been promoted by Wrap, a not-for-profit company helping people and organisations reduce waste.

Source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7431486.stm

It has been said that April is the cruellest of months but also that it can be the most enchanting. However you view it there definitely seems to be an air of transformation about this time of year. The change from winter to spring, like all growth, is seldom an easy transition. It can be painful to realise that we may need to make changes. To admit that our current way of living may not be the best way to continue can be a humbling and life-enhancing experience. To start making the necessary changes may seem impossible and frightening at first, but taking baby steps, remembering to note the difference each small change makes and experiencing every positive benefit can make the transition easier.

One of the most important changes we can make today is to ensure that the food we consume, the products we purchase, the services we use and virtually everything we do is as sustainable as possible. This may sound like too difficult a task and if we believed much of the popular press it would seem impossible to be as virtuous as we would like to be; so why bother?

The truth however, is that living sustainably is actually relatively easy. Once we give up thinking in the old-fashioned, financially obsessed and single-minded way it becomes even easier still. When we revert instead to an open-minded, more community focused way of thinking, working and living, one that seeks a happiness that neither correlates with or depends on financial status, then we will be well on the way to achieving that life enhancing change.

Imagine emerging from a frosty, wintry cocoon into a brand new day full of promise. Imagine unfurling fresh wings in preparation for flight. Then, we will be able to see that what seemed like life’s cruel, trying nature, the pain of growth, the struggle to find enough courage to face our fears and taking those risks has all been worthwhile.

Competition:
Thank you to everyone who entered our Easter Hunt The Chicks competition last month. It was great to see so many entries and we hope you all had fun retrieving our extremely free-range chicks! And the 5 prize draw winners are… drum roll … Gawain C from Harrow, Linda C in Kent, Marie H of Birmingham, Moira K of Selkirkshire and North Yorkshire’s Helen S - congratulations! In addition to the prestige of having their names displayed on our Competition Page - our lucky winners received a clock of choice and their very own cute chick toy in the post. If you didn’t win this time, don’t fret - we will be running more competitions in the future.

Shop Orders:
Good news from the RecyclingCDs website is that we are offering a 10% discount on all orders placed directly on our website – www.recyclingcds.com - next month. So from May 1st to 31st all you have to do is enter the word ‘MAYPOLE’ in the Voucher Code box when you place your order on-line and hey presto - a 10% reduction will be yours to enjoy! Don’t forget that postage within the UK is still free until June 1st so now is a great time to make that order.

Even better news for all you PayPal users out there! We are now accepting payment for orders on our website by PayPal as well as all standard credit cards – no more excuses!!

Forums:
Following the desire for spring change, we have updated the RecyclingCDs Forum to a new version that should prove easier to use. If you have any feedback do let us know.

This month’s posts look at a dilemma caused by the Mumbai state government proposal to redevelop the city to ‘world class’ standards by 2013 and how this will affect residents of Dharavi, the city’s poorest area which is often referred to as the biggest slum in Asia. With over 200,000 people employed in the recycling industry there, Dharavi acts as the city’s waste disposal system. Some residents fear the consequences of a possible end to this function, which may leave many without a means of earning a living and the city with an overflow of waste with no one to recycle it. As you can imagine there is varied opinion and several opposing ‘solutions’ to this complex issue. Many of these ideas are applicable to other communities outside of Mumbai.

There is also a video post in the forums, courtesy of YouTube, with UK designer Oliver Heath showing us the many recycled and of course beautifully stunning features around his home. Other news and information includes - London based artist Sumer Erek’s recycled Newspaper House; information on how to recycle your old mobile phone whilst raising money for charitable causes; details of London Aware 08 - an upcoming event providing ‘green ideas for everyday living’ which will be held at the Barbican Centre on May 10th and 11th.

Your views on these topics and posts are as always very welcome. Simply sign up here to become a member of the forums and get posting your opinions either on the current topics or any other recycling and eco-conscious thoughts and ideas.

Networks:
As usual you can stay in touch with RecyclingCDs on our Facebook and MySpace pages as well as our blog and website. If you would like to help us spread the recycling word why not add a RecyclingCDs banner to your own website or blog. Check our Links Page for codes.

Until next time, happy recycling!

From Rache & all at RecyclingCDs

BBC World Service’s Shivani Dhillon reports on the amazing story of Dharavi, a vast neighbourhood nestling in the heart of Mumbai - India’s financial capital. At one time, Dharavi was a fishing village. Now, as well as being one of the largest ’slums’ in Asia, Dharavi is also a recycling emporium. The majority of Dharavi’s one million plus inhabitants are financially poor (relative to Mumbai as a whole) and resourceful. Gathering waste from all over the city, items discarded by Mumbai’s wealthier population, the so called ’slum’ dwellers transform old, used and unwanted trash into new products. Plastics are the main source but almost anything is recycled here from paper and card to candles and soap.

However, a state government plan to transform Mumbai into a ‘world class city’ by 2013 is worrying some residents of Dharavi. It is thought that the area’s inherent recycling culture will be damaged alongside development which seems to be focused on providing a playground for the rich whilst simply contaning the poor in new high-rise flats. There are fears that the waste currently being dealt with by Dharavi will pile up around the city rather than being recycled.

Man recycling plastic (Getty Images)

From: Shivani Dhillon One Planet, BBC World Service, BBC News, 18 April 2008

…It spreads over 525 acres (212 hectares) and is home to more than a million people… Dharavi may seem like any other: full of dirt, filth and sewage, but what may be an eyesore for most of the city’s residents is also a recycling marvel… It’s an industry that employs almost 200,000 people.
Walking through Dharavi, home to an estimated 15,000 single room factories, it is difficult to find anything that is not recycled here… Most of the waste is collected from various households and commercial buildings by housemaids and servants who then bring it to Dharavi for recycling…

Read more here
More info on Dharavi here and here

Welcome to the March edition of RecyclingCDs News. We are following a slightly different format this month with a shorter issue due to the constraints of packing up and preparing to leave New Zealand to return to the motherland in a few days. Hopefully we’ll be back to our regular layout by next month.

Easter:
Another month brings another celebration and this March sees Easter fall on the weekend of 21st to 24th. Contrary to popular belief and despite what Cadbury, Nestle and the other confectionary companies would have us believe, this holiday time is NOT solely about the sale and consumption of chocolate eggs! It is rather, depending on your personal beliefs and point of view, either a Christian celebration of the redemptive death and resurrection of a certain Jesus Christ, or a festival emanating from Pagan rituals in celebration of the change in season from winter to spring.

We may choose to follow the religious edict of fasting or perhaps giving up one or two unnecessary luxuries over the period of Lent. Perhaps we prefer to simply appreciate the new life and growth that spring traditionally brings symbolised by hatching chicks and daffodils (or lent lily as it used to be called). We may encourage our children to decorate egg shells, organise or attend an egg hunt, or take time to enjoy the freshness of spring air by taking more walks.

However we decide to celebrate Easter this year we ought to be aware that buying a plethora of chocolate gifts and gorging on sweets serves only those who make it their business to promote and sell these products which too often lack ethics on any level. The origins of the season, whether they are for us rooted in religion or nature, seem to have been overshadowed by the greedy hand of corporate consumption. Perhaps it is time to regain perspective and free ourselves from the perceived desire to buy things we neither need nor even want.

The Story Of Stuff:
Talking of corporate consumerism and in the vein of reducing consumption The Story Of Stuff is one of the latest short videos by the Free Range Studios. Narrated by Annie Leonard this revealing movie explains in an easy to understand way how we have become slaves to the system of consumerism. This system, which is controlled by several large corporations has caused and continues to cause untold damage on emotional, physical and mental levels to us as individuals, communities and nations as well as to our environment and planet.

In this clever animated feature, Annie offers simple but effective solutions to the problems we find ourselves dealing with on a daily basis. These include a reduction in personal consumption as well as changing the system on a larger scale. Click this link to watch the story of stuff and find out more: http://www.storyofstuff.com/

Artists:
As usual we would love to hear from any budding artists out there who would like to see their designs up on walls all over the country in the form of our functional cd clocks. So if you have a collection of photos, digital designs or paintings just waiting to be given a new lease of life complete the online application form here: http://www.recyclingcds.com/artists_join.asp

Competition:
Six adorable little spring chicks have taken their free-range status to extremes and got themselves lost on the RecyclingCDs website! They could be on any of the pages. All you have to do is find them, make a note of the unique identification numbers and complete the entry form in order to win a clock of your choice as well as a cute fluffy toy chick. The first 5 correct entries drawn on 21 March will win the prize so get entering here: http://recyclingcds.com/competition.asp

That’s all for now. I’m off to continue the packing so have a wonderful Easter and we’ll catch you again next month - enjoy!

From all of us at RecyclingCDs

The Textile Recycling Info Sheet from Waste Online provides details of why, how and where to recycle used clothes, fabrics, shoes and other textiles.
“It is estimated that more than 1 million tonnes of textiles are thrown away every year, with most of this coming from household sources. Textiles make up about 3% by weight of a household bin. At least 50% of the textiles we throw away are recyclable, however, the proportion of textile wastes reused or recycled annually in the UK is only around 25%
What You Can Do
* Take your used clothes to a textile bank. Contact the recycling officer in your local authority if there are no banks in your area and ask why; they may collect textiles through other means. Alternatively you can take used clothing to local charity shops.
* Give old clothes/shoes/curtains/handbags etc. to jumble sales. Remember to tie shoes together: part of the 6% of textiles which is wastage for merchants are single shoes.
* Buy second-hand clothes - you can often pick up unusual period pieces! If bought from a charity shop, it will also benefit a charity.
* Buy things you are likely to wear a long time - a dedicated follower of fashion can also be a green one if items are chosen carefully.
* Look for recycled content in the garments you buy. This should be on the label, though at present there is no conventional marking scheme and some companies do not always advertise the recycled content.
* Buy cloth wipers instead of disposable paper products as the product can be used repeatedly.”
More here

The NZ Reduce Your Rubbish site has heaps of useful ideas on how to recycle household items such as plastic bags, food waste, paper and packaging. Here are some of our favourites:
* Re-use washed zip lock bags for sandwiches and snacks rather than using plastic wrap
* Old calendars, colourful pictures, etc. can be used to make your own envelopes. You can unstick a used envelope and use it as a template for making envelopes
* Broken crockery can be used as drainage at the bottom of pot plants
* Local pig farmers often appreciate any kitchen scraps that you can offer them. If you know of any in your area, get in touch with them and find out if they are interested in your kitchen scraps
* Get a couple of hens for the household. They eat all the kitchen scraps and provide fresh eggs as a bonus
* Buy a smaller rubbish container for the kitchen. This makes you to remember to recycle
* Make sure bottles and tins are clean before putting in the recycling bin. This prevents flies both at home and the recycling station
* Put a ‘no junk mail’ sticker on your letter box. You’ll be amazed at how much this reduces your rubbish
Read the full list here

Phew - another month has flown by already! We hope 2008 has got off to a great start for you with lots of positive, productive energy! We have been busy bees so far promoting RCDs and spreading the recycling message. Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few years you can not have failed to notice the increased exposure, enthusiasm and interest in sustainable lifestyles. At RecyclingCDs we firmly believe that change begins at home and every little step counts towards the inevitable changes ahead. For us this means following the increasingly popular mantra - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. One of our goals is to show how easy it is for us all to make the small changes that will add up to making a big difference to human survival and positive evolution on this great planet of ours.

News:
Spreading The R-Word - One of the latest venues you can find RecyclingCDs info and clocks is the recycling area at Marsh Farm Country Park in Essex. A working farm owned and managed by Essex County Council with around 150,000 visitors a year, Marsh Farm aims to provide educational and fun days out for children and families. Young visitors can enjoy the adventure play areas as well as getting close to the animals and learning about farming first-hand. Open all year round the Country Park is free to enter and offers a range of coastal walks along the River Crouch and its surrounding creeks.
As usual, you can link to us on our social networking pages - Facebook and MySpace pages - as well as our blog and website. You are welcome to add one of our banners to your own site or blog if you would like to help us spread the recycling word.

Love is All Around - February is that time of year when commercial suppliers and affiliates like to remind us that we need to buy a gift for that special person in our lives to show them that we really care - yeah, whatever! If just hearing the words ‘Valentines Day’ makes you want to crawl back under that rock, don’t despair! We have a solution. Instead of feeling compelled to buy token gifts one day of the year we recommend taking the whole month of February to show your partner, potential partner, that girl who smiled at you in the pub once but hasn’t noticed you since, your best friend, the boy who delivers your paper who you’d love to get to know, your mum, dad and basically anyone and everyone you know and meet on a daily basis, that love is all around us, every day!
Despite what corporate funded media would have us believe, showing love and spending vast amounts of money are not even vaguely related concepts so we suggest finding real ways to show you care. We could all do with a little more kindness, thoughtfulness, respect and quality time. So let’s spread the love this month, not just for Valentines’ Day but for everyday! And then perhaps we may feel inspired to do the same for March, even April or May - well, see how you go anyway!
But what if you are so overcome with romantic desire that showing love in a meaningful way is just not enough? What if you feel desperately impassioned to purchase a little something special for a special someone in your life? Well, what better gift than an environmentally friendly symbol of timeless love! Yes, a recycled CD clock from our growing selection would be just the thing! Ok, plug over - let’s get back to the love fest!!

Designs:
Valentine - Those aforementioned Love themed clocks, priced at a very reasonable £5.99 with free UK wide delivery can be found here but remember you can also personalize your gift with your own photograph or lovingly crafted design. Simply complete your order here.
Chinese New Year - The Lunar New Year is almost here. Celebrations begin with the New Moon on February 7th and continue for 15 days until the Full Moon Lantern Festival on February 21st. 2008 is Year of the Rat and as the first of the cycle of 12 animal years the rat is considered a symbol of good fortune and wealth. Our selection of Chinese New Year themed clocks can be found here.

Artists:
Our featured artist this month is Zora Puskacova whose colourful images of natural beauty include landscapes and flora of her native Slovakia. Each design has a charming description attached which is sure to evoke a smile. Zora’s designs can be found here and her interview follows below.

Question: How did you get involved with RecyclingCDs?
Answer: After I bought RecyclingCDs’ clock on eBay. A froggie one for my friend’s birthday!
Question: What inspires your designs?
Answer: Beauty of nature, definitely!
Question: What are your favourite design tools?
Answer: My pocket camera, good light and often a bit of good luck:-)
Question: What do you enjoy listening to?
Answer: I’ve been always mad into Celtic and Irish music (Capercaillie, Karen Matheson, Cara Dillon, Mary Black, Loreena McKennitt, Clannad, Secret Garden, Ronan Hardiman, Philip Riley…), I also enjoy gospel and world music (e.g. Ladysmith Black Mambazo). My music collection has already grown too large… and it is still growing! Help!:-)
Question: Where else can readers see your work?
Answer: www.deepgirl.sk – my personal website. As it is written in Slovak only, to see my photos, please click on my face (yeah, really!) and then navigate to “fotogaléria” (gallery).
Question: If you were prime-minister / president / mayor for 1 week, what would you change?
Answer: I would definitely increase social benefits for just-married couples, young families and parents.

We are on the look out for new designs to add to our clock collection, so whether you are a professional or amateur photographer, painter or designer and would like to see your work on our products, simply complete the application form here.

Forums:
This month in the forums and RecyclingCDs blog we look at a project commissioned by WhyWaste and designed by Sheffield University students to build a functional building from waste products in Space of Waste. Plus we feature Becky Redman’s F*&king Recycle posters which have caused some controversy with the series title but the bold typeface and clever yet simple designs adequately portray the importance of recycling to a wide audience.
Your views are very welcome as always. Simply sign up here to become a member of the forums and get posting your opinions either on the current topics or any other recycling and eco-conscious thoughts and ideas.

Until next time,
Happy Recycling!

From: Bradford Environmental Action Trust
“6 weeks, creative vision, and other people’s rubbish… How to turn a waste of space into a Space Of Waste.
Space Of Waste has been nominated for the Architects’ Journal Small Projects Award!

WWW.WHYWASTE.ORG.UK are delighted to announce that our Space Of Waste building - made from other people’s rubbish - has been nominated for the prestigious Architects’ Journal Small Projects Award with winners to be announced on the 4th March followed by an exhibition of the nominated entries is running at the Building Centre, London from 5th March for six weeks.
The innovative architecture project, which aims to raise awareness of diverting waste material from landfill, was commissioned by WWW.WHYWASTE.ORG.UK, the free online waste exchange for businesses in Yorkshire and the Humber and was designed and built by postgraduate architecture Students from the University of Sheffield with structural calculations by Arup.”
Read more here
Thanks to Superuse