I particularly approve of Metro Vancouver's amusing ad campaigns on reducing holiday waste (pre-Christmas) and their inventive initiatives post-Christmas, like this: Metro Vancouver Recycles. Yes, it's a mother-lode of a resource for finding where you can dispose of this, that and the other, but also where you can donate the unwanted items that found their way into your apartment over the holidays! Metro Vancouver Recycles links to Thrift Stores, recycling depots, and, joy of joys, here I have *finally* found a place to get rid of used batteries, including the rechargeable ones from a rather useless battery-powered toothbrush (another ghost of Christmas past, I should note!).
If you live in Belcarra, Anmore, Pitt Meadows, Tsawwassen, even Lions Bay and Bowen Island, and every larger district inbetween, check out Metro Vancouver Recycles and let your friends and neighbours know about this fantastic resource! Well done, Gregor Robertson et al!
And if you're not from this neck of the woods, I have a few generic suggestions for you:
I can't recall if it was Rich or Wendy or neither of them, but a coworker of mine came up with the terrific idea of advertising "regifting" of unwanted items at work, particularly unopened bottles of alcohol not enjoyed by the original recipient (i.e. a cheap red if you only drink white; tequila when the very sight of it makes your stomach turn, etc.). Regifted items can then be auctioned or raffled off, the proceeds of which going to charity (your local Food Bank will appreciate this, as will other organizations). A small collection of various wines is sure to pull in a fair bit of moula for your worthy cause.
Using up Christmas leftovers is also a great way to curb waste (that's a rather silly saying, isn't it? Because we want to avoid waste on the curbside! Ah well). Here's a few links on what one can do with leftover turkey:
http://www.recyclethis.co.uk/20101216/our-five-favourite-ways-to-use-up-leftover-turkey
http://www.ehow.com/how_4695491_reuse-leftovers.html
http://allrecipes.com//Recipes/meat-and-poultry/turkey/leftovers/Main.aspx
Of the using-up-leftovers sites, I am impressed by this one - Love Food, Hate Waste. Link to their Christmas dinner leftover uses here: http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/recipes
A very Happy New Year's to all! Bring in 2011 the right way - recycle well and reuse everything! No need to mention 'reduce' - I'm sure the post-Christmas credit crunch will nicely curb our shopping & spending habits for a time.
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