Daily Loaf

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

The Temple Terrace Preservation Society’s next meeting to feature local author Dr. John Henry Fleming and his book Fearsome Creatures of Florida – Dr. Fleming will do a reading and signing of his latest book that’s mystical, magical and funny, with an environmental theme about preserving what’s left of Florida.

Tampa Bay Area farmers’/green markets guide - Here’s your guide to finding the freshest, locally produced foods and goods (and an all-around good time) at weekly fresh markets in the Bay Area.

Sustainability and spirituality – Eric Stewart’s speech on sustainability for a local Unitarian Universalist church in Odessa.
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Seeing as this Sunday is America Recycles Day, I’ve been in the recycling mood and racking my brain for different ways to do so. Then I stumbled upon something wonderful: cash (or swag) for recycling! We could all probably use some extra dough these days, and just for the act of recycling you can make a profit.

RecycleBank is a website where you can register to earn points toward gift certificates for food and other goods just by taking out your recycling every week. After registering, you receive a chip to be placed on your recycling bin. That chip is then scanned when the recycling is picked up and your items are weighed. The information then gets transmitted back to RecycleBank and you receive 2.5 points for every pound of items you recycled. You can earn up to 450 points per week and 5,400 per month. Those points can then be used to get certificates for items from over 1,500 participating businesses, like CVS, Chick-fil-a, Kraft, Kashi, Foot Locker, and Kohl’s. Points can even be redeemed for passes to museums and can be donated to organizations and charities like the Ocean Conservancy.
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This Sunday marks the 12th anniversary of America Recycles Day, a nationally recognized day dedicated to recycling and purchasing recycled and repurposed items.

America Recycles Day is working in partnership with Keep America Beautiful and the National Recycling Coalition to support local communities and raises awareness by educating citizens about the benefits of recycling. The ARC website states: “The purpose of America Recycles Day is to continue to promote the social, environmental and economic benefits of recycling and encourage more people to join the movement toward creating a better natural environment.”

What can you do? First of all, if you don’t already recycle on a regular basis, this Sunday would be a great day to start doing so. Maybe you could make every Sunday your official recycling day (if you don’t receive the pick up service in your neighborhood).
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The local elections will be decided Tuesday night, but voting for the City of Largo Recycled Innovations Contest has just begun.  This online contest encouraged innovators of all ages to make a use-able items with the contents of their trash can.

Eligible recycled innovations range from kitty litter box hanging gardens to baby food container space savers and more. The innovators went beyond traditional recycling and re-purposed their trash into items that may be reused for daily activities.

Contestants will vie for innovative prizes such a solar/wind powered charges for cell phones, MP3 players and other electronics, environmental board games, and learning toys to name a few.  Prizes will be awarded to the greatest innovators in various age categories: Junior Innovators, Tween Innovators, and MacGyvers.
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Recycled Innovations Contest:

Eco-Innovators are those who think outside of the can to create treasure out of trash. The City of Largo’s Recycled Innovations Contest encourages innovators to make a useable creation for photo submission in their online event.

All entries must be made of 75 percent or more recycled or material that would otherwise be discarded. Contrary to a recycled art show, Recycled Innovations are items that may be reused in daily activities. Accepted entries will be functional items made of materials that can be diverted from the waste stream.

The City of Largo’s Recycled Innovation Show will give participants the opportunity to get their designs noticed across Tampa Bay and beyond. Innovative prizes will be awarded to the greatest innovators in various age categories: Tiny Innovators, Junior Innovators, Tween Innovators, Techie Innovators, and Macgyvers.
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