Talking Trash

On Thursday, April 22, we celebrated the 51st Earth Day with the theme, “Restore Our Earth,” which urges us to work together to help repair and restore our environment. While Earth Day is a great time to do something extra for our planet, we need to remember...

“No matter where you look, you’re bombarded with these hopeless messages about the future of our planet…. All that doom and gloom stuff is only half the story. You are not nature’s bogeyman. You are nature. You’re connected to this great wide world in ways beyond your...

By the mid-20th century, pollution was so dire it required attention in the United States. In 1969, Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, got the idea for a national event addressing the pollution problem and a need for change. On April 22, 1970, this first...

Last week, we shared information about Save Our Seas 2.0, legislation passed last December to reduce marine debris, especially plastic. Here’s what you can do to help! • Avoid excess packaging whenever possible. • Opt for reusables, such washable water bottles,...

Marine debris, especially plastics, not only harms over 800 species of marine life in our oceans, but also the local economies of coastal communities. This debris threatens to grow and cause further damage to our world if left unchecked. Last December, the United...

PFAS in an abbreviation for “per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances,” which are manmade, highly stable fluorinated chemicals. Because PFAS compounds do not break down easily in nature, they are referred to as “forever chemicals.” Since the 1940s, thousands of PFAS...

Have an old pair of eyeglasses you no longer wear hanging around in a drawer somewhere? Donate them! There are several programs that collect old glasses for reuse by those who need them. According to OneSight, a nonprofit “committed to eradicating the global...

If you are connected to solid waste management in any way, “circular economy” is a buzz phrase that appears often. We want to move away from our “linear economy” toward the “circular,” but what exactly is in the circle we seek? The Ellen MacArthur Foundation offered a...

You pick up the remote, but no matter how hard you press the buttons, it won’t work. It’s time for new batteries. Once you find the new batteries you need, what should you do with the old ones? So much to do and think about when all you wanted was to sit down and...