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Recycling for Charities @ EcoFocus NYC 2010

Thursday, May 6th, 2010

Recycling for Charities

Here is coverage from the event provided by NY1. Make sure to check out the video!

NY1 Video Coverage Featuring RFC

A new feature has made steel water bottles even more appealing, aside from reminding people how much better the bottles are for the environment than buying cases of plastic, disposable water bottles. One of the innovations on display at the recent EcoFocus green technology showcase is the $35 3-D Bottle.

“What we’ve got here is a 3-D marker, and when you order these bottles online, you can upload a home video and you also give us a password to access that video,” says Mike Aaron of Greensender.com. “And when you expose this image to a webcam, a three-dimensional scene appears to fall out of the side of this bottle and your home movie begins playing.”

Added motivation to carry a reusable bottle. For added motivation to keep the lights off in your home, this is the Solatube Daylighting System…starting at $300 it pipes sunlight into rooms with few or now windows.

“We have a dome that captures the sunlight on the roof, it directs it
down a reflective tubing and down into your interior space, where it’s diffused throughout your room,” says Teresa Benedetti of Solatube International.

The Radio Thermostat Company of America helps consumers save energy with a WiFi component that is being built into several brands of thermostats. The component, which costs between $50 and $150, is then integrated into a home wireless network.

“When you connect up to the website, you get a user name and password and that’s how you’ll identify the module,” says Dan Goodman of the Radio Thermostat Company. “You’ll get it and then you’re connected so you can control it via the iPhone, Android, BlackBerry or via a website.”

RFC EcoFocus NYC

Finally, older, outdated and even broken gadgets can be sent to Recycling For Charities, which finds a place for the used device, assigns a value to it and then donates that value to the charity of one’s choice.

“You go to RecyclingForCharities.com and right on there you can choose from over 900 charities. You select which charity you like, print out a shipping label, your tax donation receipt,” says Dwight Zahringer of Recycling for Charities. “All you do is put it in a box and drop it in the mail and then we take care of the rest.”

The organization says the devices will both be refurbished and resold or the parts will be sold off, but not a single piece of the donation will be placed in a landfill.

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Another Green Victory for Earth Day

Friday, April 30th, 2010

Let’s face it- Michigan weather is never predictable! While the rain continued to come down on April 25, it didn’t stop brave participants from joining Recycling for Charities at the Recycle Royal Oak event.

Many families fearlessly made their way to the different green stations set up in downtown Royal Oak for the event.  Make and take crafts were provided by Arts & Scraps, SOCRRA had recycling bins on site for sale, and OUR Credit Union provided free document shredding. And of course RFC was there to collect e-waste from community members! For being so green those who donated were able to sign up to win a free Digital Camera or Digital Photo Frame, provided by Kodak. Below are our winners, who we thank again for taking the time and braving the rain to donate!

Kevin Patrick Miller and his new Kodak Digital Camera
“What a great unexpected surprise. It made my day!”


Nicola Davis showing off her Kodak Digital Photo Frame
“Oh my I love our frame- we have been playing with it and it took me all evening to load 400 pictures on it! What a fun toy!”


Through RFC’s Earth Day events, and with the help of local participating businesses, we were able to collect over 150 electronic waste items for recycling. Imagine if this e-waste had been thrown out, ending up in our landfills with the chemicals possibly seeping into local ground water! Not only were we able to save these electronics from affecting our environment but we also helped raise funds for two worthy non-profits, the Hospice of Michigan and the Oakland Land Conservancy. RFC was also able to give away the ever popular biodegradable pots with planted vegetable seeds! Over 150 pots were handed out at our Earth Day events, many to kids who were excited to get their gardens started right away!

From communicating with possible partners to placing donation requests so that participants did not walk away empty handed at events, Winter Greenterns Jenny and Katie were involved with the entire event planning process. The Greenterns spent time writing press releases, contacting media sources, spreading awareness through social media, and convincing local businesses to help our green cause! But most importantly Jenny and Katie were able to see how a non-profit organization functions behind the scenes and gained real job experience. It also didn’t hurt that they worked in a fun and energetic setting at the Recycling for Charities office!

Part of the Recycling for Charities Team with the Greenterns

A special thanks to all donors and participating businesses who had to put up with weekly intern visits and calls! We truly appreciate your support: AlexEmilio Salon, Bean and Leaf Café, Bethel Farms, Café Muse, Douglas J Salon, Nutri-Foods, Scout, Siegers Seed Co., Shine, TASI Juice Bar, and Titzy’s.

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Recycling for Charities: Our Earth Day Challenge

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

Where is your old cell phone? How about your iPod that broke last month? Most likely they have been sent to their final resting place — your junk drawer. Why not do something positive with it, instead of letting it sit to collect dust?

So, are you up for the challenge? If you are visiting the Royal Oak area between March 22 and April 24 you will have the opportunity to recycle your used and broken electronics, including cell phones, iPhones, pagers, iPods, PDAs, MP3 players, and digital cameras. Leading up to the Earth Day weekend, Recycling for Charities will have collection boxes placed in participating businesses and stores in downtown Royal Oak. Individuals can drop off their old electronics and may even receive a discount for being green (a list of participating businesses, locations, and discounts can be found at the end of this post)! Feel free to snap a picture of yourself doing your green deed and upload it to Facebook or Twitter. Don’t forget to mention us so that we can show others how you helped make a difference this Earth Day!

When thrown away cell phones create  tons of garbage in our landfills. Just one is enough to pollute about 1 Olympic sized swimming pool of water!  Recycling for Charities is giving you the opportunity to help the environment while celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day. The challenge to keep our landfills clean of e-waste will culminate with the Earth Day community celebration in downtown Royal Oak, April 25. By participating you can help prevent electronic waste from entering our water sources and landfills, where they can continue to release harmful chemicals. All you need to do is bring your used or broken wireless electronics, and RFC will do the rest. Going green is that easy, and you can write it off on your taxes!

RFC will also be taking their mission to the streets of Royal Oak in their eco-friendly Smart Car. Participants will have the chance to get up close and personal with the Smart Car and will learn how this tiny vehicle is helpful to the environment.

Only 10 percent of used and broken cell phones are recycled each year. What is your excuse? You can help Recycling for Charities eliminate e-waste this Earth Day by donating your old electronics to local stores or by bringing them to the community event on April 25 from 12-3:30 pm. Let’s help make Michigan a little “greener” this Earth Day, together!

Participating Businesses:

1 ) AlexEmilio Salon – The goal at AlexEmilio is to make an impact on your life, just by changing how you look. They want you to feel amazing when you leave and continue to feel that way. The salon offers haircuts and color along with nail and facial treatments.

409 South Main St., Royal Oak, MI 48067

2 ) Bean & Leaf Café – This café provides their customers with environmentally friendly cups that are 100% bio-degradable and offers many varieties of fair trade organic coffees. Customers can also browse the internet while enjoying their cup of coffee thanks to the café’s free Wi-Fi. When you buy a $20 gift card, you will get a drink of any size on the house, and all of those who work in Royal Oak can receive 10% off their order- be sure to mention Recycling for Charities!

106 S. Main St., Royal Oak, MI 48962

3 ) Café Muse – Voted as having one of the best sandwiches in America by Esquire Magazine, Café Muse offers an array of items for breakfast and lunch. They also pride themselves on their natural cuisine, using fresh ingredients and products that are humanely treated and grown without the use of pesticides or growth hormones. Make sure to look for a blurb on Recycling for Charities in the list of specials at Café Muse!

418 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, MI 48067

4 ) Douglas J Aveda Institute –Douglas J provides cutting edge cosmetology education. With its affiliation with Aveda, Douglas J is able to share and exchange curriculum ideas and learn the latest innovations in areas like cosmetology and esthiology. Students provide services such as haircuts and color, as well as spa, facial, and nail treatments under the supervision of their instructors. All donations dropped off at Douglas J will benefit the Oakland Land Conservancy.

409 S. Center St., Royal Oak, MI 48067

5 ) Scout – This eclectic shop sells art work, home décor, vintage finds, pottery, and textiles… just to name a few. When you drop off your old electronics at Scout you will receive 10% off of all candles.

508 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, MI 48067

6 ) Shine – When visiting this trendy store expect to find unique bags, jewelry, pillows, books, body products, and much more! You will receive 10% off your entire purchase when you drop off your old electronics at Shine!

621 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, MI 48068

7 ) TASI Juice Bar – Known as the ‘healthy side of fast food’ TASI serves up great smoothies and fresh snacks. As a bonus to the environmentally-conscious,  the wheatgrass used in their delicious drinks is organically grown!

204 West 4th St., Royal  Oak, MI 48067

8 ) Titzy’s – The philosophy of Titzy’s is to bring great and unique maternity, infant and nursing wear to people at a fair price. They also offer organic items such as lotion for mothers and babies. Those who drop off their electronics at Titzy’s will receive 10% off their entire purchase!

506 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, MI 48067

Not going to be in the Royal Oak area? You can still do your part to help us reach our goal by donating items to be recycled right here on our website.

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Plastic Waste Forms Island of Garbage in Pacific Ocean

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

The Great Eastern Garbage Patch. Have you ever heard of it? Most haven’t. Located at a natural collecting point right in the center of revolving currents called the North Pacific Gyre, the Great Eastern Garbage Patch is a floating island of waste estimated to be twice the size of Texas. That’s right- TEXAS. Somehow this massive garbage heap had shied away from the media for years, but has now been brought to the public’s attention via Captain Charles Moore of the Oceanographic Research Vessel Alguita, who is credited for its discovery.

Thousands of miles from land this garbage patch is littered with debris that many would assume is from people aboard passing ships, but researchers think not. They estimated that 80 percent of the trash is actually due to land dwellers and has eventually found its way over the years to the North Pacific Gyre. This is nothing but bad news considering that there is even more trash riding the currents as you sit and read this now, destined to add to the island’s growth.

A 10 mile-wide fleet of plastic Taco Bell take-out bags.

80,000 Nike running shoes involved in a containership spill in 1990.

Discarded fishing nets and lines that run miles long.

“Nurdles”, or tiny plastic pellets that resemble tapioca and carry high concentrations of deadly chemicals, one hundred billion pounds of which are used each year to make things like CD cases and plastic pipes.
This is just some of what can be found on and near the Great Eastern Garbage Patch, but they all equal this: roughly one million pieces of plastic per square mile across hundreds of miles of the Pacific Ocean. Countless animals in and out of the water have confused these floating plastic objects as food or have gotten tangled or strangled in plastic lines and nets only to lose their lives. According to Marine Biologist David Barnes of the British Antarctic Survey, “Plastic is not just an aesthetic problem. It can actually change entire ecosystems.”

Right now we can only expect the trash to continue invading the ocean. There are bans in place to prevent the dumping of plastics but enforcement on the open ocean is not taken seriously and when accidents occur they do not need to be reported. This means people like Captain Moore, who are trying to stop plastic from taking over our ocean, don’t even have a chance to clean up the debris left by others, even if by accident.

What is ironic is that people value plastics for the same reason plastics are causing so much harm to our oceans: its durability. While manufacturers place the blame of plastic debris on consumers, Captain Moore makes a good point saying that, “there’s no reason why a six-pack ring or a peanut butter jar should have to last for 400 years.” While manufacturers have attempted to perfect biodegradable packaging there is only one company, EarthShell, which has made real progress. The company has already begun work with the National Park Service who uses their biodegradable plates and has even provided many McDonald’s restaurants with their clamshell boxes. The Environmental Cleanup Coalition has also made a huge impact by taking the initiative to collaborate with other organizations who try to come up with ways to safely remove plastic and other pollutants from the ocean.

Recycling for Charities is passionate about helping to eliminate waste in any way possible. While we are limited to recycling electronic waste we have tips to help consumers prevent the growth of this plastic-waste island too. You can buy products with less plastic packaging and therefore decrease your plastic waste. For example, instead of buying pop or soda that has a six-pack ring around them, buy the case in the cardboard box that can later be broken down and recycled. Also, you can practice and promote the proper disposal of plastic items. Recycle your plastic waste when possible and never litter, especially near places like the beach where wildlife can mistake your trash for food. If you do not have the means to donate money to an environmental organization you can always donate your time by helping with a local clean-up at a park or beach. Remember, your small effort can make a big difference.

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Haiti Aided by the American Red Cross, and Technology

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

In just 2 days the American Red Cross was able to raise $5 million through their mobile fund raising initiative in order to help earthquake relief efforts in the country of Haiti. “Raising this amount of money, $10 at time, is a true testament to the American spirit,” said Susan Watson, director of marketing and visibility for the Red Cross. The American Red Cross also showed its own spirit by initially pledging $1 million to support Haitian relief.

Without the worry of making a long-term commitment to the American Red Cross, individuals are able to make a $10 donation via a cell phone text message. The donation is simply charged to the donor’s cell phone bill and he or she never even has to leave the comfort of their own home. Many people react immediately when a disaster strikes, and the ability to text donations, with no need to call a hotline or browse a website for information, is instant and satisfying.

By creating the text message campaign the Red Cross made it quick, easy, and convenient for people to make a small yet significant difference. According to the organization the $10 donation provides a first aid kit equipped with enough ointment and bandages for one of their responders to treat 15-20 injured earthquake survivors, or can provide a family with two water cans to store clean drinking water, basic first aid supplies or a blanket appropriate to the climate.

While in the past large funds have been raised for relief efforts through different means, the fast and easy text message campaign has proven to work effectively in today’s technologically driven world. In the future such electronic efforts could also help to decrease the use of certain materials, such as paper used for in-person or mailed donations, and yet would still raise funding much faster than traditional methods.

Not only can your cell phone provide aid to the American Red Cross’s efforts through text message, but also through recycling. Old cell phones that no longer have texting capabilities still have value to us. Donate them through Recycling for Charities to easily help raise funds for the American Red Cross.



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