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Sorting My Trash: How to Overcome Recycling Apathy

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I do not want to admit it; but I will.  I have not been very good at recycling at home.  In fact, I have been downright terrible.  I hardly ever use my recycling container.

How can I run one of the largest cell phone recycling programs of its kind and still possess a high degree of Recycling Apathy at my house?  This must change!

My catchy phrase that I have used as an excuse for years is:  “I care; but I just don’t care enough” to recycle.  What is most interesting, as I look inside myself, is that I really never even tried to recycle at home.  I always felt like it was a hassle to sort out my trash.  I even got on my high horse and thought to myself, “I help to recycle thousands and thousands of cell phones – I am doing my part!”  But, you know what?  I have discovered that recycling at home is just as easy as taking out the trash.  Yes, that is my personal recycling at the end of my driveway from this week.

How to make recycling at home a permanent habit

1.  Find one thing to recycle today and put it in your recycling container.  Make it easy – like a newspaper or a plastic water bottle or milk jug or an aluminum can(s).  For me, just getting started was easy enough to help me make this a new habit in my life.

2.  Make it a fun, family project to look in your fridge and see what numbers are on your plastic bottles.  In our community recycling program – Deffenbaugh’s Curbside Recycling, we can recycle plastics numbered 1 through 7.    [What do those plastic recycling codes mean?]

3.  Locate your most convenient recycling resources.  Everyone lives near a school or church that has either a paper, glass, or multi-recycling container.  Our glass recycler is a huge Ripple Glass purple container that is only 6/10 of a mile from my house.  It takes me 1 minute to get there.  Here is the Ripple Glass locator map to see where you can recycle your glass.

4.  You might already be paying for it; so put it to use. I am charged a mandatory recycling fee of $5.10 on my trash invoice  for three months of unlimited curbside recycling.  I feel like I have a personal recycling butler come to my house once a week, take away all the stuff that can be recycled, and I only have to pay him 42 cents per week.

5.  Educate yourself on everything that can be recycled in your community.  Here is the list, in pdf format, of everything  that Deffenbaugh Recycling accepts in their curbside recycling program.

6.  Do it again next week…and the next…and the next…

WARNING: Every Image on your Copy Machine is Stored and Vulnerable to Theft

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Every image on your copy machine is stored and vulnerable to theft. Every single copy you have made – both business and personal – financial reports, medical reports, intellectual property, brainstorm sessions, might be on the hard drive inside your copy machine.


This CBS investigative report is 5 minutes long.  It is worth viewing it all and then talking to your IT/Data Security department to make sure that your company is aware of this vulnerability.


Wait till you see the section about the copy machine the investigators picked up that came from a police department. WOW!


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/digital-photocopiers-loaded-with-secrets/


Clear your Cell Phone data, too


Obviously, clearing data from your old cell phones is critical, too.  It is one of the most frequent questions I get asked regarding recycling.   We’ve even made two step-by-step videos to help clear data from your cell phones before you donate them to Cells for Cells. (How to Clear My Blackberry and How to Clear My Treo).


Additional Reading


8 tips for making mobile phone recycling easier
Seth Heine:  ecoATM Additional Information


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Seth Heine, of EcoATM was kind enough to email me a response with some additional information about the EcoATM:


Joe and his Yoohoo on the bus:  davelinger via flikr


“EcoATM response:


That is a very cool  write up! I have posted an official response below to some of the  musings / questions as well (I was once thrown out of the skating rink  for trying to boost a Yoo-hoo from the vending machine 😉


“Thanks to Jason and Cells for Cells for the kind  mention – we like what C4C gets done every day as well 😉


For the  record, I co-founded ecoATM with some braniacs, – this idea is far  larger than any one person could ever build anyways…  ecoATM is based  on the core concept that the best way to get people to act, or change  their behavior is to pay them; so far we seem to be correct, we are  collecting hundreds of phones weekly with each ecoATM, and have big  plans to roll these kiosks out to leading retailers nationwide in the  next few years.


ecoATM kiosk


Of course, the minute you put money on the table, you  attract the attention of not only everyday consumers, but sneaky types  as well; that’s why we visually and electronically inspect the items, so  we not only know exactly what it looks like, but also connect it to our  systems so we can electronically test the items as well (this also  allows us to remove data from the devices on the spot;-).  So the fake  Wi-Fi plug in the photo (or a fake / demo phone) won’t get far into  testing before we figure out something is not as it should be…  We  also take photographs and get contact info (drivers license etc) from  the customers, so we’d likely be sending “visitors” to people who keep  trying to trick our machines as well… 


We’ll be adding video game,  laptop / computer / monitor and other electronics sequentially as we  grow, so the ecoATM will become a hub of recycling and trade in / trade  up activity in the same places people buy their electronics, bringing it  all full circle.”


Additional Reading


Who Else is Making Recycling Easier or Just Flat-out Cool?


The ecoATM kiosk: How It Works


Will Kiosks Help Boost Mobile Phone Recycling?




Who else is making recycling easier or just flat-out cool?


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www.ecoatm.com


The EcoATM is one of the coolest new recycling ideas I have ever seen.  Besides winning myriad of honors and acknowledgments for their design and idea, the EcoATM’s WOW! factor is spectacular.


It is THE machine that recycles everything: Mobile Phones, MP3 & PMPs, Game Systems, Game DVDs & Cartridges, Notebook & Desktop PC’s, Printers, Digital Cameras, Flat Displays, Storage Devices, GPS and more.


Super-recycler, Seth Heine, who founded Collective Good, is the brains behind the EcoATM. 


But does it make recycling easier?


The first thing that came to my mind when Seth emailed me the info was this photo:




Will you be able to place an EcoATM in a high school or college?  Will kids try to hack it or trick it or just cheat it? (Yes, one time, when I was a kid, I tried to get the vending machine to give me an extra Twix.)


And, it still begs the question:  How will the EcoATM influence us, as consumers, to be better at recycling?  Seth once told me, “Gravity is the most powerful force keeping people from recycling.”  Gravity, in this context, is the lack of action.  Or, as I like to say, “My old cell phone is in my desk drawer and it is too heavy to get out and take to the recycler.”


Also, I’ve never been a fan of passive-style recycling programs.  There are cardboard or plastic collection boxes at the entrance of a many retail stores–usually empty.  It is all just green noise.


Will a super-cool (and, possibly, super-expensive) automatic recycling machine change the consumer’s recycling habits?


Well, if “COOL” makes people want to recycle, then perhaps the EcoATM will help defy “gravity”.


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www.envirobank.com.au


Environbank, out of Sydney, Australia,  states that their vision is “To empower the community to leave the world a better place – one beverage at a time.”  Similar to the EcoATM, the Environbank recycles beverage containers.


Again, the idea looks super cool; but my main thought is that looks like the world’s most expensive recycling tub.


The Environbank just looks like it costs at least $5000 US.


This little blue recycler to the left is a touch more than $100 US.




It would be interesting to find out what Environbank’s business model is.  Because if I am the office manager or recycling manager and I have to put a beverage recycler in the break room or lunch room; I may have a hard time getting approval for one of these.


Additionally, how long can a company like Environbank stay in business when the net profits on recycling plastic bottles and aluminum cans are miniscule?  The logo licensing fees can only take them so far i.e. Coca Cola, BP, and Bowerman’s (in Australia).


Don’t get me wrong, Envrionbank is cool and innovative.  With a ton of public education and a solid business model, this could be the standard beverage container recycler throughout the world.


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Bebe and Alice


http://www.etsy.com/shop/bebeandalice or http://bebeandalice.blogspot.com/


I am always impressed with someone who can marry art with recycling.  That  is exactly what Heather Baker has done with Bebe + Alice out of Estes Park,  Colorado.


At Bebe + Alice you’ll find eco-friendly goodness that winks at the past and nods to the future.  You can expect items to be one of a kind, made with care and designed around the philosophy that Grandmother’s slow and simple ways were best.


Here’s an example of what amazingness Heather can do.  Pay special attention to the description:


a Gnome’s Home crafters apron




Description


Upcycled denim created the perfect landscape for this gnome’s home. Momo’s Wonderland fabric makes the perfect mushroom tree pocket and apron strings. Upcycled sheeting for the cloud, vintage rikrak and buttons for grass and flowers makes this a delightful addition for your crafting inspiration! Rikrak has been left unsewn in one small space so you can slip your scissors in for easy access.


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Even More Companies That Help Make Recycling Easier


The Ecopreneurist had a great article last year that is worth looking at again:


Six Companies that Help Make Recycling Easier


Mentioned are:


    

  1. 

    Earth911.org
    

    2. 

  2. 

    Lamprecycling.com
    

    3. 

  3. 

    Terracycle.net
    

    4. 

  4. 

    Recyclereminders.com
    

    5. 

  5. 

    Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation
    

    6. 

  6. 

    The State of Connecticut 
    

    7. 



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Hey, know anyone else that makes recycling easier or flat-out cool?  Leave a comment and link them up.


Via Gary Vaynerchuk:  Emotion is a dangerous pill when doing business


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[Jason’s notes:]


I wonder how many times my emotions have gotten the better of me in my business decisions.


I know that I am a very emotional guy when doing business.  I have the butterflies and knots in my stomach when I have to deal with something I perceive as difficult or challenging – or just out of order.  Not that there is anything wrong with butterflies and knots – I just know mine frequently come from an “Oh, no!” perspective instead of “This is exciting and exhilarating” perspective.


Believe me, I am an expert at hiding my emotions – but my mind rages like in the “Serenity Now” episode of Seinfeld.  Kramer!


One thing that I have done to help avoid the “put the shovel down, time for a backhoe” situation is to surround myself with mentors – actually three mentors – all  older, seasoned, mature, and cool.


Some of the best advice I have received recently probably went in one ear and out the other; BUT the CALM that came with the advice made up for the fact that I might have missed the words.  And it gives me another opportunity to talk to my mentors again, after I have calmed down.


Oh, and I’ve got to mention that my Dad and Mom are great mentors, too.  Thanks Dad and Mom!


And, thank you, @Garyvee for another great post and for this equation Business > Emotion.