At Glynne’s Soaps we pride ourselves on being environmentally friendly. We do all we can to recycle. In our home and business, we only use products that are all natural and biodegradable. We compost what we can. We are also great fans of Freecycle, where people can give away things to someone who can use them instead of sending them to the landfill. We were surprised to see how much our weekly trash output was reduced when we began a concerted effort to recycle and compost. I read something the other day concerning recycling that made me stop and think. It said that people who have piles and piles of recycling every week and think they are doing a great thing for the environment are not 100% correct. Yes, recycling is important, but it is the third step in the mantra “Reduce, reuse, recycle” and some folks rarely consider the first two steps. The first and most important step is to reduce. Do we really need all the things we buy? Can we give preference to products that have less packaging? Is it something we can make or fix ourselves instead of purchasing? Secondly is reuse. Reusing items is even better for the environment than recycling because it eliminates the processing that has to happen to turn an old item into a useable new item. It also eliminates the need for the transportation of items from a recycling drop off center to the processing plant. Gayle and I have been very successful reusing discarded items. We built a bar from an old door that was being discarded (it is very ornate and beautiful). Our favorite chairs are chairs that were on their way to being discarded. We reworked them to create comfortable seating for us. It was easy and fun, but most importantly, we are doing our part to protect our environment for the generations that will follow. Some good websites with ideas on reusing are: www.freecycle.org www.neighBORROW.com www.reuseitnetwork.org www.recyclethis.co.uk Recycling should be the last step in the process. Only after all other options for reducing and reusing have been exhausted should recycling be chosen. The goal should be less recycling and less trash. So, before you just throw something in the recycling bin, try to come up with a way to reuse it or give it away. Jenn soapmaker@glynnesoaps.com