upcycling

The impact of recycling on climate change

Anonymous — Fri, 15 Dec 2023 17:06:45 +0000

The impact of recycling on climate change Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 12/15/2023 - 10:06

Celeste Robinson and Kate Huun

When considering climate change mitigation and reducing your carbon footprint, you probably think of driving less and turning out the lights. But did you know that organic and inorganic waste is also a massive contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions? A zero-waste lifestyle keeps material out of landfills and reduces your carbon footprint.

The benefits of recycling

As climate change and waste are ever-growing problems worldwide, it is essential to understand how these two significant issues affect each other. Recycling helps combat the climate crisis by limiting the use of raw materials and reducing waste going into landfills.

Project Drawdown estimates that recycling between 2020 and 2050 will reduce emissions by 5.5 to 6.02 gigatons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to taking over one billion cars off the streets for one year. Recycling is a practical yet easy change to help curb greenhouse gas emissions and limit the climate crisis.

When an item is recycled, it is processed and turned into something new rather than created out of virgin material or disposed of and treated as waste in a landfill.
Recycling to create something new generally uses less energy than creating a product from raw materials.
Recycling aluminum is incredibly energy efficient. Using aluminum scraps to make aluminum cans saves 95% of the energy used to create an aluminum can from raw materials. Producing 40 aluminum cans requires the amount of energy in one gallon of gasoline and can be significantly decreased by using recycled aluminum scraps.
The less energy used to produce a good, the fewer greenhouse gases are emitted in the process. This benefits climate change, as greenhouse gas emissions drive the current climate crisis.

How to positively impact climate change through recycling

You can make a difference in reducing climate change by making recycling an integral part of your lifestyle and routine.

Buy products made from recycled materials. This will support the market for recycled items and encourage the continued recycling of materials and the production of items made from recycled materials.
Recycle everything that you can. Learn what is recyclable.
Limit the number of disposable items you purchase in the first place to reduce the production of disposable items.
Swap out disposable items for reusable items. Switch to reusable water bottles, shopping bags, food storage containers and other reusable products.

Upcycled vs. downcycled materials

There are many pathways for recycled products. Turning an item into a new version of the same product is ideal when possible. Other options include turning the recycled material into new products.

Upcycling turns a recycled material into something of equal or greater value or quality than the original product. Sometimes, the term upcycling refers to the reuse of an item instead of throwing it away. Upcycling lengthens the life of a given material. Industrial upcycling depends on the materials. Here are some easy-to-upcycle materials.

Paper: Recycled office paper is upcycled as new office paper. Paper is also downcycled and turned into toilet paper, paper towels and notebook paper, generally because of contamination and lack of adequate sorting.
Cardboard: Recycled cardboard may become new cardboard. When downcycled, it becomes paper bags, packaging or paperboard.
Metals: Recycled aluminum cans can become new aluminum cans, and recycled steel cans will turn into steel cans. When downcycled, metal can become bike or car parts, appliances, rebar and other metal products.

Downcycling turns a product into a different product, but the cycle is not infinitely repeatable. An example of downcycling is when a plastic bottle gets turned into a fleece jacket. PET plastics, like soda bottles, are hard to recycle infinitely because when they become a new product, the plastic gets weaker each time. Virgin materials also often have to be added to the new product to account for the weakening that the recycling process causes.

Some materials are challenging to upcycle or downcycle and often end up in landfills. However, you can repurpose some items to keep them out of landfills. Here are examples of materials that are hard to recycle.

Plastic bags: Plastic bags cannot be put in a regular recycling bin, making collection more complex. Also, the material used for plastic bags is generally hard to recycle.
Electronics: Electronics contain toxins such as lead and mercury, which can make them more dangerous to recycle. Collection is often an issue as curbside recycling companies don’t accept electronics. You must take electronics to a special facility for recycling.
Styrofoam (or polystyrene): Products made from Styrofoam are typically contaminated with food and have an incredibly low density. Because of this incredibly low density, it is not cost-effective to transport polystyrene because it takes up a lot of space and offers very little recyclable material.

The climate impact of waste disposal

Different types of waste impact the environment differently. However, all items placed in a landfill negatively impact the environment.

Organic waste decomposes and creates carbon dioxide and methane gas. Methane is produced when no air is present, while carbon dioxide is the natural product when anything rots in the air.
Inorganic waste includes products made from natural resources such as water, fuel, metal and timber, which causes greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide and other pollutants.
Plastic waste produces greenhouse gas emissions during every stage of its lifecycle. Plastic extraction and transportation depend on oil, gas and coal. The production and disposal of plastics release tons of carbon emissions.

The waste management process, including transportation and incineration, contributes to greenhouse gas emissions.

Start recycling

Recycling is easy in Boulder, both on campus and in the community. With plentiful recycling bins and curbside pickup, you can choose to live sustainably by recycling. You can learn more about ways to incorporate sustainable habits through the Environmental Center.

Off

Traditional

White

Take a step towards sustainable fashion

Anonymous — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Take a step towards sustainable fashion Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 04/19/2023 - 00:00

Sustainable fashion aims to transition the fashion industry and consumers away from the fast fashion model towards sustainable practices in sourcing, production, distribution, marketing and consumption. This is not an easy fix by any means to the environmentally destructive fast fashion industry. Changing values, habits and daily choices takes as much inner work as it does societal. Billion dollar industries bombard us with constant marketing that shapes cultural narratives and norms and encourages us to “stay on trend.”

The environmental and social impact of fast fashion is tremendous, characterized by waste, depletion of healthy soil, contamination of fresh water sources, pollution of the air we breathe, defilement of our oceans, destruction of forests, and damage to ecosystems and the health of their biodiversity. And those are just physical manifestations of the negative impact fast fashion has on our society. There is also a hidden layer of mental health degradation, when we constantly see ads telling us that we are not enough if we don’t have whatever it is they are selling. Fast fashion ads often impact our sense of self-worth and a need for belonging.

By reading this article, you have already taken the first step towards achieving sustainable fashion, which is increasing your awareness. The next step is to learn about alternatives to our current fast fashion model. This step can be daunting with the copious amounts of information out there. Furthermore, there are often feelings of guilt and shame that surface when we become aware of how our actions have impacted both people and the planet. Finding a community is crucial when undertaking the journey of unlearning and relearning, which is why the Environmental Center is organizing a Drop and Swap event on April 25th from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. The Environmental Center’s spring 2023 clothing swap is an opportunity for CU Boulder students to not only revamp their wardrobes, but find community and support as they try to break free from the fast fashion industry.

This event will have an educational component to teach students about upcycling and mending their clothes, where to find used clothing in Boulder and about resources on campus for students to meet their needs. If you do not have clothes to donate for the swap, don’t worry, come as you are and take home new-to-you items!

If you have clothes to donate after your spring cleaning purge, you can bring clothes to the Environmental Center in UMC 355 Monday–Friday, April 17-21, or to the UMC Ballroom on the day of the event. In addition to the drop and swap event, the “give and go” move out program in the residence halls will also accept clothing.

Jumpstart your sustainable fashion journey with AWorld

You don’t have to wait until Drop and Swap to start your sustainable fashion journey. CU Boulder has partnered with the AWorld app from ActNow, the United Nations’ campaign for individual action on climate change and sustainability. The app allows users to weave sustainability into their everyday lives and track their impact. One of the many actions you can log on the A-World app is “Choose Secondhand Clothes” with an estimated impact of 16 Kg CO2 saved and 330 gallons of water saved. Be one of the first 500 to sign up for AWorld app and get a free stasher bag! From April 15 through June 15, track your Sustainable Buff actions using the AWorld app. For each Buffs action logged, CU will invest $1 toward campus conservation and local carbon sequestration projects, up to $10,000.

Join the sustainable fashion movement and break free from the fast fashion industry at the Environmental Center's upcoming Drop and Swap event, while also finding community and support along the way.

Off

Traditional

White

Winter closet clean out

Anonymous — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Winter closet clean out Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 11/07/2022 - 00:00

As the cold weather creeps into Boulder, you’ll soon turn to sweaters, cardigans, and crewnecks. Those are some bulky clothing items, and your closet may be cramped for space, which makes this the perfect time to slim down your wardrobe and the pieces you have in your closet. Here are a few tips and tricks on cleaning your closet and getting ready for winter!

Make a plan

When deciding what to keep, what to get rid of or deciding on your “maybe” pile, having a plan to follow makes it easier. Think about what you like to wear, where you go most often and how much space you have. Having a balance of different options is best.

One thing in, one thing out

Adopting this mentality ensures that your closet is never overflowing with clothes. If you bring in a new shirt, donate an older shirt that you simply don’t wear enough to keep around.

Be realistic

Know that you can’t keep everything, or get rid of everything. Think about how many items you want to clean out from your closet. It’s okay to only remove three or four items. When it comes to deciding what to keep, think about these questions:

Would I buy this today?
When was the last time I wore this?
When will I wear this in the coming months?

Try the “maybes”

Put your “maybes” at the front of your clothing choices, and try to wear them at least once before deciding if you keep or get rid of them. You might be surprised by how much you like that shirt that you haven’t worn in a while, or that pair of pants that has been stuck at the bottom of your drawer.

Donate!

You can give your unwanted clothes a new home by donating them at any drop-off bins located around Boulder or second-hand stores like the Salvation Army or Goodwill.

Remember, you can make your closet cleanout fun! Invite your friends to do a clothing swap before donating the rest of your unwanted clothes - play some music, listen to a good podcast and have friends over to give their opinions. The Environmental Center is also having a DIY Sweater Upcycling event: Turn down the heat, turn up the funk! This is a student-led workshop on how to upcycle clothing and mitigate climate change through behavior change. The event will start with food and a presentation about the fashion industry and energy consumption. Attendees will then be led through 101 machine sewing techniques and start doing patchwork on their sweaters. Bring any sweater or hoodie you need to either repair or want to add some patchwork to (fabric for patchwork will be provided).

Off

Traditional

White