Recycle

It's fall! What a better time to re-check your junk mail and minimize where you can. With iPhones, Blackberries, Facebook & the internet everywhere, it's too easy to find people or businesses, and shop online. Do you really need phone books, credit card offers and glossy printed catalogs dropped off at your front door? Save the 1000's of pages used for each dinosaur-era book:

One of the most popular questions we are asked is "Can I recycle this?" Now that we've gone over what you can recycle for curbside efforts in Philadelphia - plastics and beyond - here's a list of what you can't recycle:

Good news for Philadelphia! You no longer have to worry about asking me what you can & can't recycle checking those pesky numbers on your plastics containers - they're ALL recyclable (which just started August 1st). Here's what you can recycle:

Crazy Brits - How England Entices to Recycle: Could it work for Philly?

Let's break it down by the numbers...The average American: Generates an average of 4.6 pounds of trash per day 2.5 lbs of that trash goes to landfills Only 2.1 lbs of trash is recycled or incinerated How much are you recycling, Philly? What can you recycle that you aren't currently? What are you having problems recycling? After the jump, let us know in the comments.

Philly's 3rd Annual Spring Cleanup had its biggest cleanup ever thanks to greenies like you with its UnLitter Us Campaign! Over 11,000 volunteers worked at 231 official project sites to collect over 1.3 million lbs of trash, 140K lbs of recycling, 50 parks & recreation centers cleaned and 763 neighborhood blocks cleaned! Incredible numbers, Philly! But how can you keep it up for this Earth week (and always...) Here's some suggestions:

Yesterday the Philadelphia Streets Department announced the launch of UnLitter Us- a sustained initiative and movement to rid Philadelphia of litter and create clean, beautiful and safe blocks. “With UnLitter Us, we are addressing the problem of litter head-on,” said Streets Commissioner Clarena I.W. Tolson. “Through the use of spoken word artists and comprehensive community programs, we aim to inspire pride and action in all Philadelphians to join the movement for a litter free city.” The spoken word artists perform original poems that express their frustration with litter and their dream of seeing it stopped. Their words are featured in UnLitter Us messages on TV, radio, web and public transit that debuted across the city March 29th. The Philadelphia Streets Department will work closely with community leaders to bring UnLitter Us to the ground level, showing Philadelphia residents how they can help tackle the city’s litter problem Planned programs include:

If you're anything like me, one of your biggest fears is wearing the same outfit twice in a week... or month (unless you can strategically dodge who you saw in the questionable attire.) Could you go for the same outfit for 365 days? Sheena Matheiken vowed to wear the same dress for 1 year (yep) with only recycled accessories. Talk about making an environmental statement! Watch the video for more info: The Uniform Project Trailer from The Uniform Project on Vimeo. Makes you think maybe we don't need a closet (or two) full of options to be stylish...

I had a recent bout of ‘green guilt' that got me thinking … I just got back from a trip to beautiful Los Cabos (don’t hate me!) - The trip, scenery, company and Mexican hospitality were off-the-charts awesome. The downer…the hotel was not eco-friendly. As in, NO recycling. (I am a strong advocate of checking into hotel policy prior to vacationing. But this time was out of my control. ) Why do I bring this up? The more conversations I have with sustainable minded people, the more I realize most of us experience a little ‘green guilt’ from time to time. It’s tough to act 100% eco-minded. Unfortunately, we’re bound to be in situations now and then where we feel uncomfortable. I felt really guilty knowing my bottles of dos equis weren’t headed for the recycling bin... The truth is harping on this mindset and feeling unworthy because I couldn’t exercise control is counter productive. What’s the best way to overcome these feelings?