Take a pledge to Reduce, Recycle, and Reuse
Global Recycling Day is celebrated on March 18 every year to help recognise and celebrate the importance of ‘recycling’ and how we can contribute to secure the future of our planet.
Every day, we produce boundless heaps of non-biodegradable waste. And that’s not good news. It takes years for this waste to decompose in landfills. A study taken up by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in 2016 revealed that India produced about 52 million tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste each year. Imagine the state of landfills in our country!
So, what’s the solution for this growing garbage menace? There’s a lot we can do to balance it out. Many countries have realised the seriousness of the problem and are opting for alternative solutions. Of many tested and tried solutions, one stands out from the rest – ‘Recycling’.
Recycling uses an old item, either in its original or changed form and converts it into something new.
Taking the thought of recycling seriously and implementing it in their systems are countries like Sweden, Germany, and Scotland. Sweden’s recycling system is so revolutionary that the country has to import rubbish from other countries to keep its state-of-the-art recycling plants going on. They are even powering 250,000 homes with the energy produced from burning garbage. Scotland recycles about 52 to 56 percent of their municipal waste and is soon inching towards becoming a ‘zero waste’ country.
With an objective to make a difference and address this problem, we have chosen recycling as the hobby for the month of March. Here are eight cool recycling ideas for you:
- Trash to treasure: Turn all those used cans, plastic containers, broken frames, and unused cables into something creative. Did you know you could make a piggy bank or a mobile phone holder from a cereal box? You can also make tiny flower pots from plastic cans and old mugs.
- Redesign your old clothes: Your old clothes often sit in your closet taking up most of the space. Instead of throwing them away, you can make cool alterations, add fancy accessories, and flaunt them.
Reuse old newspapers: From fancy paper bags to home decors to making paper boats and fans, you can reuse old newspapers in so many ways to create something decorative and useful. So, the next time before you toss that old newspaper, think about making a grocery bag for your parents or you could also learn how to make recycled paper out of it.- Recycle used books: Giving a book a second life by finding it a new home is the best way to recycle your secondhand books. Spread the love of reading by giving your books to others. You can throw a cool book swapping party for your friends or donate them to a local library, or give it to charity.
- Recycled bookmarks: Turn all your used cereal boxes into decorative bookmarks. Instead of using a ribbon, you can use a twist tie or a paperclip to make it look nice.
- Turn paper cups into something useful: Recycle paper cups and transform them into funky decor items. You can make a colourful pen stand, a beautiful wall hanging decor or even a multi-coloured bouquet. So, the next time you throw a birthday party, make sure you use paper cups for decoration.
- Old plastic bottles as bird feeders: Do-It-Yourself bird feeders are easy and fun to make. Turn all your used plastic bottles into little bird feeder boxes and hang them in your garden for the birds.
- Make your own paper envelopes: You can make your own quirky birthday envelopes using old books, maps, and magazines. Reuse and decorate them with stationary craft items.
These are a few fantastic ideas you can use to recycle things around you. If you have any cool recycling ideas, share them with us in the comments.
Start small, make an impact!