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Children as Catalysts for Change

Danylo Herasymov

December 16, 2020 |

Рубрика (Rubryka) |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Ukraine, Mykolayiv

Ukraine ranked No.9 on the list of countries with the highest amount of trash per capita. In Mykolayiv, the city partnered with a nonprofit to sort waste at public schools. “A total of 20,000 students took part last year, collecting, sorting, and recycling 119 tons of waste.” The program has proven successful, students compete for a top prize. Children are “our agents of change.” Other towns want to adopt the program in their own schools.

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Reusing, recycling, rethinking

Jessica Wolfrom

December 10, 2020 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Alexandria, Virginia

Mason & Greens is a zero-waste store that reduces environmental impact by selling package-free items, from shampoo bars to organic produce. Dry goods and the wines, oils, and kombucha on tap are bought with reusable containers and priced by the ounce, which reduces plastic waste and allows customers to buy only what they need. In addition to minimizing products' carbon footprints, the store has been profitable since it opened and the owners say that, while prices are initially higher for consumers, reusable products may be less expensive in the long run because they don’t have to be replaced as frequently.

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Seattle Public Utilities' waste-pumping program has cut sewage spills from homeless people's RVs in half

Scott Greenstone

November 28, 2020 |

The Seattle Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

To help those experiencing homelessness, Seattle Public Utilities workers travel around the city knocking on RV doors and asking occupants if they need their sewage tank pumped. Some RVs are broken down and occupants can’t get to a public dump site to dispose of their waste, so wastewater spills have increased over the years. However, since the pilot program was introduced in 2020, the spills from RVs have been cut in half.

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Gold star for you: New Zealand council puts stickers on bins of best recyclers

Eleanor Ainge Roy

November 16, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: New Zealand, Christchurch

Officials in Christchurch use a public reward and shaming system to motivate proper recycling sorting after only 48% of recycling was able to be accepted. Residents who correctly sort contents receive a large gold star on their bin while those who do not are given a warning. After three warnings, bins are confiscated and residents must sign an agreement to recycle properly to get their bin back. 155,000 bins have been spot checked, with 26% receiving gold stars, 61% receiving warnings, and 246 bins have been removed. The percentage of recycling content that can be accepted has increased to almost 80%.

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Should you recycle your disposable mask?

Jane C. Hu

October 29, 2020 |

High Country News |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New Jersey

A company known as TerraCycle recycles "items other companies won’t accept" – including the many masks, gowns, and gloves that have been used during the coronavirus pandemic. While the service is free for those who can access one of their ZeroWaste box locations, individuals must request and pay for a box if they wish to participate. Environmentalists say that there is still debate about "whether it’s more environmentally friendly to throw away masks or recycle them," the service itself helps "remind consumers and companies that trash doesn’t disappear after it’s thrown out."

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How a #Litterati army on Instagram sparked a global fight against litter

Michael J. Coren

October 12, 2020 |

Hothouse Solutions |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

What started as a small group of people taking pictures of waste in their communities and tagging it on Instagram with the hashtag #Litterati, turned into a global effort, and even an app, to map and dispose of trash. Users can upload to the app an image of trash and machine-learning algorithm can tag it location, material, and company who made it. The city of San Francisco asked the makers of the app for help documenting cigarette butts and tobacco products on its streets and ended up winning a legal victory over the tobacco industry to increase the taxes on their products.

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Bug Breeders Are Cultivating Waste-Guzzling Flies to Gobble Up America's Trash

Colleen Stinchcombe

October 05, 2020 |

Future Human |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Camas, Washington

A growing number of bug breeders in the United States are raising black soldier flies to tackle greenhouse gas emissions, land degradation, and food waste. The larvae can convert waste into fertilizer for crops, while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions. In one experiment at Louisiana State University, about two tons of cafeteria food waste is processed by the fly larvae. Creating a similiar system on a larger scale for municipalities can be expensive, but the flies could be a multifaceted solution to the country’s trash problem.

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Kenyan engineers recycling plastics for bricks

Yvonne Okwara-Matole

September 28, 2020 |

Citizen TV Kenya |

Video |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Kenya

Gjenge Makers Ltd is an alternative building product manufacturing company that creates products – such as pavers and blocks – out of recycled plastics. Founded by four Kenyan engineers, the team began by studying the manufacturing process and researching what products would do well on the market. They then built all of the machinery themselves, which break down the plastics, and then mix them with other building material products to ultimately create customizable plastic bricks that can withstand larger weight and are less expensive than concrete. They are popular in rural and lower-income areas.

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Soap on tap? A startup arrives in NYC with a plan to take the plastic out of cleaning products.

Claire Elise Thompson

September 21, 2020 |

Grist |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

To make food and cleaning products more accessible to those experiencing economic hardship, the startup Algramo has installed more than 2,500 automated bulk-dispensing systems throughout Chile where people can purchase an item and come back to refill it using the same container. Instead of competing against other consumer good companies, Algramo works with them to help change their packaging practices to reduce their plastic waste. Algramo is scaling the service to New York City and Indonesia to help cash-strapped and eco-friendly shoppers.

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Jersey City's Composting Program Expands During a Pandemic

Emily Nonko

September 16, 2020 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Jersey City, New Jersey

Since the Jersey City composting program, over 50,000 pounds of disposable waste has been used to fertilize home gardens, parks, and community gardens, instead of going into landfills. While scaling the program is a challenge due to the lack of infrastructure for integrating composting as part of the city’s waste removal, residents were eager to participate.

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