Hello everybody! I’m Barbara from Požega, little town in Croatia. My total carbon footprint is 5661 kg of CO₂ per year which I find concerning. Average carbon footprint in my country is 5736 kg of CO₂ per year which is just a little above my carbon footprint. Since my carbon footprint startled me, first thing I decided to do to decrease it is to use the three r’s - reduce, reuse and recycle. I started to dispart plastic, glass, paper and organic waste and put them in different containers for recycling. I also talked to my mom, dad and brother about recycling and they decided to join me in decreasing our family’s footprint. We also decided to eat more organic food and to use paper or cotton bags when we go shopping so we can reuse or recycle it. One more thing we decided to do as a family is to reduce number of incandescent bulbs in our home and substitute them with energy saving bulbs. I hope I will suceed in decreasing my carbon footprint. :)

P.S. Check out this link, I hope it can help you in reusing, reducing and recycling! :) http://www.dnr.mo.gov/env/swmp/pubs-reports/threers.htm

Whenever I go to the grocery store, (and I pretty much go every other weekend), my mom and I bring those cloth-like reusable bags, and we use every single one. We get A LOT of food, so we bring about 12 bags. We use those bags every time we go. And of course, we use the plastic bags we do end up acquiring from different stores for trash around the house.

There is no reason not to reuse and recycle. Many people think it is really hard because you have to put a lot of effort into it, but you don’t. According to Utah.edu Americans throw away enough garbage to fill 63,000 garbage trucks a day. Unfortunately I never really recycled before this project, but after reading all the ways to recycle and researching it I see how useful recycling is. Recycling saves money and landfill space and it reduces energy use, fuel use, and the rate of global warming. It also improves efficiency, air quality, and water quality. By just recycling one ton of aluminum, 14,000 kWh of electricity, 1,663 gallons of oil, 237.6 million Btu’s of energy, and 10 cubic yards of landfill space can be saved. Recycling one aluminum can can save enough energy to run a TV for three hours. Now think about how much resources could be saved if people recycled all of their glass, paper, plastic, cardboard, and steel. The website linked has a lot of information about how much each material saves and how much Americans waste. It helps you realize why recycling is important.
Reusing is also important and there are many organizations to help with this. I know this because when I was in fourth and fifth grade I grew a lot and at the end of each of those years I had a lot of clothes that had not really been worn, but did not fit me. Donating clothes is not only a good deed, but is also very good for the earth. One store that I think is a really good charity is the Interfaith Hand Me Up Shop. This is a nonprofit shop that funds community outreach programs, such as helping un or under employed people with living expenses, elderly outreach programs, meals on wheels for South Montgomery Program, and family crisis intervention. I work in this shop sometimes for NCL, all of the employees are volunteer and they sell donated clothes for a cheap price. I think this is one of the best stores because it helps fund majority of the charities around where I live, but there are also places like the Salvation Army and there are some places that even pay you for your clothing, like Playdoughs Closet.

There is no stopping some people when it comes to fashion. The new season, latest trend, and the newest style requires buying more new clothes. I know I love to shop and many people do. But what do you do with your old clothes that you don’t want anymore. According to http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.115-a449, “Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year, and clothing and other textiles represent about 4% of the municipal solid waste.” Now all that clothing that you don’t want anymore could be put to good use by giving it to the less fortunate or donating it to good causes. Before I do my shopping every season I clean on my closet, I take the clothes that don’t fit, I don’t like, or are out of style and I either give them to Good Will or some other clothing donation site. Another thing I love to do is donate some items to places where people up-cycle clothing. By up-cycling clothing you can turn out-of-style pieces in-style clothing. Any of these ways to recycle, re-purpose, and for others to reuse your out-of-date clothes is really helping your carbon footprint. It’s great to have to new trends and show your style, but make sure you’re being eco-friendly about where your old clothes go. What are some organizations you like to donate your clothes to?

Although recycling is a wonderful way to prevent landfills from overflowing with plastics, paper, glass, and aluminum, there are more ways to help keep the environment eco-friendly. One easy way is to reuse those huge gallon water jugs that usually go in the trash can or recycling bin. At my grandmother’s house, we collect rainwater in her gallon-jugs, then use the water for her plants. The food that her plants make are then used in her delicious cooking! :) Donating clothes is another good way to help both the environment and those less fortunate to have new clothes. Every year, between summer and fall, my family gathers all our gently used or outgrown clothing and donates it to Goodwill. This helps us be both more eco-friendly and more charitable to others. I even wear my mother’s hand-me-down jeans, instead of her having to throw them away! Although it isn’t exactly “trendy” to wear my mom’s clothes, I’m helping the environment AND wearing jeans that I think are great! For more ideas on reducing, reusing, and recycling, here’s a link. It’s a little article that gives both ideas and information on becoming a greener person!

Since we are on the topic of reusing materials to reduce carbon emissions, I was thinking about how people throw away plastic containers before even trying to reuse them. I try to reuse plastic containers whenever i can, but sometimes these containers are dirty and need to be washed. So, I began to ask the question, “Can you wash some plastics in the dishwasher?” I researched the topic and came up with this verdict: you can wash some but not others. It depends on the thickness of the plastic and whether or not it will hold up to the heat and detergents used in the washing machine. Here is a helpful site that determines if your plastic is safe to wash.