recycle2shop.com

I just love Treehugger.com This media outlet site was started by Canadian Graham Hill and in my opinion is the best place to go for information for people who care about green news and solutions to earth’s recovery.  If you want to know what’s really happening in Japan and how that might affect the rest of the world, check out Treehugger.

Today,  there is an article Mini-FAQ About Japan’s Nuclear Power Plant Crisis which answers questions in a measured way…as opposed to the usual media reporter melodrama.  What would otherwise have been a tragedy for Japan alone (as in Christchurch, New Zealand and Haiti for their countries) is fast becoming a threat for all.

Could this be the tipping point for wind and solar power?

Solar Energy

Wind Power

VHS tape flowers

too cute

Fabulous flowers from Craftstylish contributor.  This site is chocablock with patterns and directions for crafty projects using recycled ’stuff’.

The doggy coat from a wool vest is too cute and comes with easy instructions and pictures.  More support here for Zero Waste - proving that nothing needs to go to landfill.

So, I am a Quaker and one of our testimonies is ’simplicity’; I practice leaving a light footprint on the planet - some ‘leavings’ are easier than others.  I can recycle my stuff but what about the rest of the planet…so I worry, and blog and make and sell stuff made out of recycled stuff.  This helps my little corner of the world - what about the rest of it?  Two brothers from Victoria are doing something about the rest of the planet and plan on educating the world about how complexity is producing a huge footprint (like plastic islands in the Pacific Ocean).  They are twitting and youtubing about their adventures and (this I especially love) they are having fun doing it - such as surfing,  sailing and  partying with folks they encounter - that’s called building community (another Quaker trait).

OceanGybe is a global sailing expedition that explored the remote coastlines of the world, searching for adventure, garbage and waves. The goal: bring awareness to the vast tracts of undocumented ocean pollution that afflicts every coastline on earth and affects the people who depend on them for survival. Over the past three years, UVic Engineering grads, Bryson Robertson, Hugh Patterson and Ryan Robertson have sailed around the world documenting the polluted state of our oceans and isolated beaches (from Uvic calendar).
The boys are home and along with Andrew Naysmith of Oak Bay Johnny productions are taking their journey to documentary and education.

French Football Team Recycles Plastic

Nike has used 100% recycled plastic bottles (PET Fabric) for the shorts and 96%  PET with 4% organic cotton for the shirts.  French football is now uber eco-friendly.  The new kits will be available to the rest of us at a later date.  For soccer (footie) mad kids everywhere this is just too good to be true.  The team coach is calling this French ‘elegance’ - love it!  So Nike and the FFF are helping to close the recycling loop, reducing the plastic mountain and good news for recyclers.

Victoria regional district  (CRD) has compiled a list of recyclers for just about everything. You can find out where to take your ’stuff’ at myreclycopaedia.ca Anything you can’t put in the ‘blue box’, this website will help you find it a home .

News just in - Sunday Government Street Artisan Market may have to leave the streets (Victoria city council wants to give the street back to the motorists-bah humbug) and move to Centennial Square this summer.  If this does happen, Victoria will no longer have a “street” market.

view from the street

Government Street Market

Meanwhile, good news - the Winter Covered Market at Market Square (every 3rd Saturday) is a success story for locavors - free range chickens, eggs, veggies, mushrooms of all varieties, artisan breads and  goats cheeses.

Finally, funky Fernwood is hoping  to become a Transition ‘Town’ - the perfect place to downsize the gas guzzler.  Fernwood is also the home of the Compost Centre - a recycling triumph.

Go to the  Brita recycle page for Canada (there is a USA link there as well) and print the Canada Post label to send 3 filters back to Brita for recycling AND it is a free service.  Way to go Brita. 

I got to drive my Victoria Car Share Coop truck this week - soooo much fun for a woman that loves driving from a height for a change.  Busy on the buses this week as well - one was a visit to UVic for a lecture about our local water habitats - this week was Viaduct Flats at Glendale Gardens water/marsh flats restoration project;

Viaduct Flats

last week it was all about Rithets Bog.  In both cases, Saanich farms in the 19th Century wiped out the indigenous Salmon runs (Glendale) and First Nations Cranberry plantations(Rithets) and now some very clever people are attempting and succeeding with a lot of hard work, knowledge and volunteers to restore the ‘natural’ Vancouver Island environment.

September 18 was Eco Day at Moss st and the sun shone most of the day.  The Water Watch Coalition was there promoting public ownership of water/wastewater - “an integrated, community based approach to water and waste/water”.

The Land Conservancy also had a booth, fresh from saving Madrona Farm as a community legacy.

We started late at Government Street Market on Sunday just as the monsoon type weather turned to September sunshine.  This was the last Sunday for me as I am off to Vancouver for a wedding bash - a close friend’s daughter and a ‘big fat Greek wedding’.  Back at Moss street Market on October 2nd though.

Funky GreenJean Aprons

Another great weekend at Moss Street and Government Street markets.  Here’s Leona, smiling in spite of the weather.

Government Street in the rain

Amazing how many people still don’t know that fleece can be made from plastic bottles and that virgin fleece is made from oil by-products and that includes anti-freeze.

We have been working on building up our library of recycling FAQ.  So far, the plastic info is coming along nicely, still to come: (more) plastic; paper; wood; metal; rubber tire; textiles.

Victoria’s Quakers’ Eco Group are making water the focus for 2011 with particular interest in ongoing creek revivals, such as Bowker Creek.  Uvic is hosting ‘creek walk talks’ about our local bogs, viaduct flats and Witty’s Lagoon in October at the University.  The talks are free and the walks start in February 2011.  Phone 250 472 4747 to register.

I love taking Recycle2shop to our local craft markets…anything can happen.

Moss Street Market on Saturday was a bit wet, in fact the rain was unrelenting and we needed wellies.  The hardy Fairfield folk still came to buy their weekly locally grown veggies and  to meet the newbie recycling stall. 

Sunday at the Government Street Market was the opposite weather - typical of our coastal climate - warm sunshine all day.  Lots of out of town visitors talking recycling and buying our great goods.  One couple from Washington reminding me of the water purification project in a small village in Tanzania using recycled plastic water bottles, as I showed them our fleece products made from plastic bottles.