The R4 Initiative

Kids Petition Crayola to Recycle Markers
Photo: Flickr/stevendepolo Written by Jenn Savedge, Mother Nature Network A group of elementary school students concerned about the environmental impact of Crayola products has launched Crayola: Make Your Mark!, a fast-growing campaign on Change.org that has already gained more than 59,000 signatures. The students, kindergarten through fifth-graders at Sun Valley School in San Rafael, Calif., are part of a Green Team called Kids That Care led by volunteer Land Wilson, known as Mr. Land to students. Wilson created the Change.org petition after his students discussed the environmental impact of discarded plastic. Check it Out: Museum Exhibit Teaches Kids About Reuse In his petition, Wilson writes: “Every year, Crayola makes about half a billion markers — enough markers to wrap around the earth more than three times! — and sells them all around the world. Millions of kids use and love Crayola products — including the students at Sun Valley School, where I volunteer. That’s why we’re asking Crayola to make sure these markers don’t end up in our landfills, incinerators and oceans.” The petition asks Crayola executives to give consumers a convenient way to recycle the millions of Crayola markers manufactured every year. Wilson says the kids are hopeful Crayola will make its current recycling program ? an internal program that includes only markers malformed during production ? available to all consumers. They are petitioning Crayola to create a ?take-back? program that would allow consumers to easily recycle plastic markers. Don’t Miss: Eco Moms Who Made a Difference In just one week, thousands of people have signed on to the campaign. More from Mother Nature Network: 10 off-the-radar recyclers What to buy used (and what not to) Wind turbines recycled into Dutch playground Recycled paper napkins

Microsoft to go 100 Percent Carbon Neutral
On top of becoming entirely carbon neutral, Microsoft is also looking into making its Redmond, Wash. campus more energy efficient, saving the company $1.5 million next fiscal year. Photo: Microsoft One of the world?s largest corporations is about to make a huge swing toward going green. Just over a month remains for software giant Microsoft to meet its goal of becoming carbon neutral by July 1. Earlier this month, CEO Kevin Turner posted on the company’s official blog that Microsoft pledges to make all direct operations carbon neutral ? including data centers, air travel, offices and software labs ? at the beginning of the 2013 fiscal year, which begins in July. ?Working on the issues of energy use and environmental change provides another opportunity to make a difference in the world. It?s the right thing to do. And it?s also an opportunity to promote positive change, as the world transitions to new ways of using energy and managing natural resources,? Turner writes. More Corporate Sustainability: Green from the Top Every Microsoft business will now be responsible for the carbon they create, which means increasing purchases of renewable energy. The company will place a price on carbon for each of its sub-sectors in 100 countries, based on the price of carbon offsets and renewable energy. Each business will be financially responsible for doing their part to offset carbon emissions. Microsoft will purchase carbon offsets for any emissions they can?t completely eliminate. ?We believe climate change is a serious challenge requiring a comprehensive and global response from all sectors of society. This carbon charge-back model is one way we seek to both reduce our impact and test new approaches which we hope are broadly useful for other organizations,? the company says on its blog. Microsoft will also pilot a greener buildings initiative for their Redmond, Wash. campus to make its building more energy efficient, which is projected to save the company $1.5 million in the upcoming fiscal year. CarbonSystems, a supplier of sustainability software that has overseen similar initiatives at Canon, Fuji Xerox, IGA and other companies, will keep Microsoft in check as it checks up on the software company?s environmental data and identifies how it could be run more efficiently. Take a Look: Bluetooth Keyboard Made of Bamboo

EcoBorder Turns Old Tires into Landscape Edging
A look at EcoBorder's brown edging option, made from recycled tires. Photo: EcoBorder If you toss out an old tire and let it sit in a landfill, in 100 years, it will still look like a tire. No biological organisms are known to be able to break down the durable nature of vulcanized rubber, which is a great thing when the tires are on your car, but not so great when it comes time to dispose of them. But what if your old tires could be used to keep your yard clean and tidy yet flourishing with flowers, greenery and vegetables? That?s the idea behind the recently launched EcoBorder, a gardening purveyor that turns old tires into borders for gardens and landscaping. Combining used rubber with glue and exterior paint ? which turns the borders green, black, brown and red ? EcoBorder edging is next to indestructible, the company says on its website. ?To best understand the longevity of these products you can reference some of the other applications for crumb rubber; such as speed bumps, parking stops, rubber infilled synthetic turf fields, playground equipment, horse mats and handicapped ramps just to name a few,” the site says. You’ll Also Like: Bridgestone Keeps Tires out of the Landfill Unlike traditional block borders, EcoBorder can be bent and stretched up to 70 degrees, which means you can get those perfectly circular or curvy borders. Little cutting is needed and installation requires no digging ? just connect each piece and stake it into the ground. EcoBorder comes in 4-foot-long pieces and are sold in packs of two and six at about $10 per piece. The product is sold at Lowe’s, The Home Depot and various other retailers throughout the U.S. and Canada. Find your local recycling solution for used tires

Special Delivery: New Modular Homes Go Anywhere
Photo: Connect:Homes Written by Matt Hickman, Mother Nature Network There?s a new modern green prefab company on the scene gearing up to produce sleek, factory-built homes that no doubt possess a couple of deceiving, shipping container-ish traits including, most notably, an easy-to-transport nature and rectangular form. But when it comes down to it, these modular beauties are anything but shipping container homes. In fact, the folks at just-launched Los Angeles-based Connect:Homes make a concerted effort to distance their product from the retrofitted shipping container home fad, claiming that ?[shipping containers] contain a lot of toxic materials, are very difficult to re-purpose, and really aren?t meant for habitation.? Founded by architects Jared Levy and Gordon Stott, two expats from industry heavyweight Marmol Radziner Prefab, the mission of Connect:Homes is to “deliver modern homes that are affordable, green, and available wherever your are.” The company is placing a big emphasis on that last aspect, widespread availability, as Connect:Homes will be the first prefab company capable of delivering modular homes completely through the standard intermodal network. That is, the homes can be seamlessly delivered to installation sites virtually anywhere via rail, ship or the industry standard, truck, without any hidden costs or logistical headaches. What?s more, Connect:Homes? innovative, patent-pending modular system cuts delivery costs by as much as 90 percent, and the homes are 90 percent completed (the industry standard hover around 50 percent) at the company?s Southern California factory prior to shipping, meaning that less time, energy and resources are wasted during the installation process. Electrical, plumbing and mechanical systems along with exterior and interior finishes and doors and windows are all taken care of, leaving only module-line seaming, utility hookups, and a few other details to be tackled during installation. Keep up with the Craze: IdeaBox Unveils Energy Efficient Prefab Home Photo: Connect:Homes Explains Levy in a press release announcing the launch of Connect:Homes: “We did not want to be limited by geographic location. There is a growing global demand for affordable green, energy?efficient homes, but until now there hasn?t been a way to sell homes to national and international markets. Connect:Homes will change that, delivering our homes from factory to doorstep anywhere in the country with the same ease as any other major commodity.” In terms of geographic location, the lovely renderings released by Connect:Homes prove that the homes look good just about anywhere, from woodland meadows to uber-dramatic hillside perches to suburban lots. The homes themselves will be available in nine different models that range from the 640-square-foot, one-bedroom Connect:2.1 to the Connect:8.4, a 2,560-square-foot abode that spans two levels and includes four bedrooms. In the middle are the Connect:5.2 and Connect:5.3, two- or three-bedroom configurations that measure 1,600 square feet. Prices for the homes start at $145 per square foot/delivered to $165 per square foot/installed. More: A Prefab Home That’s… Fabulous? On the green front, all steel-framed Connect:Homes are designed to attain LEED Silver certification out the door, with Gold and Platinum certification ? and net-zero energy status ? a possibility depending on additional bells and whistles added at the installation site. Standard green features in each home include LED lighting, recycled glass countertops, a high-efficiency water heater, water-conserving fixtures including dual-flush toilets, FSC-certified bamboo flooring, EnergyStar appliances, zero-VOC paints, finishes, and adhesives, a whole-house ventilation system, low-E windows, high levels of insulation, a fully recyclable, heat-deflecting cool roof, exterior wood siding and decking made from FSC-certified cedar, and much more. Photo: Connect:Homes Photo: Connect:Homes Rooftop solar arrays, rainwater catchment systems, a hot water recycling pump, sliding sunscreens, trellises and a few other features are optional upgrades. And, of course, Connect:Homes? factory building process is a highly efficient, low-waste affair that eliminates the massive amount of construction waste (8,000 pounds!) associated with traditional building by 75 percent. The install process itself is estimated to take less than two months with minimal site disturbance or the need for a massive crane. Continues Levy: “Our goal was to give consumers the high quality home that they desired at a price point that they could afford. The conventional building process is inefficient and the prefab industry does not currently deliver on its potential. We knew there must be a better, smarter way to build modern, sustainable homes that people could actually afford.” Right on. Head on over to the Connect:Homes website for plenty more info, images and a mighty informative breakdown of the process of buying a Connect:Home. And although the company has yet to complete an actual home, a prototype Connect: 2.1 will be on display at Dwell on Design at the LA Convention Center from June 22 ? 24. Be sure to check it out if you plan on attending this year. Post-Dwell on Design, the “pop up” home will also be open to the public somewhere in the L.A. area. More from Mother Nature Network: What is arbortecture? Gorgeous, truly green building, that’s what. 8 roadside attractions made from salvaged materials Museum-quality passive house sells in Cleveland Japanese office tower built with a road going through it

16 Billion Beverage Containers Recycled in Calif. Last Year
Californians recycled over 16 billion beverage containers last year, including water, soda and juice bottles. Photo: Flickr California might be the most populous state in the country at nearly 38 million people, but it’s high recycling rates are still staggering. According to CalRecycle?s Biannual Report of Beverage Container Sales, Returns, Redemption, and Recycling Rates, released last week, Californians recycled over 16 billion beverage containers in 2011. The recycling rate stayed basically flat from the year before, but the California recycling program recovers one-fifth of all beverage containers that are recycled in the U.S. annually, Susan Collins, executive director of the Container Recycling Institute, tells Resource Recycling. California?s recycling program made about $300 million last year recovering recyclable scrap ? a much needed economic boost to a state that just reported a $16 billion deficit. Check Out: 7 Ways to Make Money by Going Green In the first half of the year, the state?s overall recycling rate was 86 percent. The second half of the year saw a drop in recycling to 79 percent. The year end drop, CalRecycle says, is a trend they see annually. That brings 2011?s overall recycling rate to 82 percent. For a detailed rundown of California?s 2011 recycling rates by container type, view the full report. (PDF) Related: San Fran Turns Transit Tickets into Trees

Help Save 571,230,000 Pounds of Paper Towels
Photo: Shutterstock 13 billion pounds of paper towels are used in the U.S. every year. If all Americans used one less paper towel a day, 571,230,000 pounds of paper would be spared over the course of the year. One man has a simple strategy to make it happen. Joe Smith, former District Attorney for Oregon’s Umatilla County and former chair of the Oregon Democratic Party, unleashed these statistics during March’s TEDxConcordiaUPortland event in one of the most straight-forward TEDx talks we’ve ever stumbled upon. The problems with paper towels are many-fold: they don’t contain significant amounts of fiber for recycling and when they’re dirty or wet, they degrade even further and become non-recyclable. And paper towels soaked in oils, pet or baby waste or other harmful substances should be steered clear of the compost pile. We’ve come across quite a few paper towel alternatives before ? simple terrycloth rags, fancy snapping towel sets and, not to be forgotten, the old wipe-your-hands-on-your-pants trick ? but Smith’s strategy is devilishly simple and comes in handy in workplace and other public restrooms. Fair warning: You’ll most likely never dry your hands again without thinking of this video:

Bridgestone Keeps Tires out of the Landfill
Bridgestone plans to repurpose one old tire for every Bridgestone tire sold in the U.S. Photo: Flickr You?ve seen the pictures and headlines: Tire dumps go up in flames, releasing toxic chemicals into the air while creating an environmental and aesthetic eyesore. Bridgestone has seen the problem play out again and again, and that?s why they?re in the process of doing something about it. On Earth Day, the tire manufacturer introduced its newest plan to keep tires out of dumps, even after they?ve blown out or worn down. The ?One Team, One Planet? program will put one tired old tire to reuse for every tire purchased in the U.S. Recovered tires will be turned into new tires, shredded for athletic surfaces and roads and used as added fuel for power plants. But they aren?t only collecting old tires if another was sold. Partnering with Portland-based River Network, an organization dedicated to protecting rivers and watersheds, Bridgestone allows the public to create its own community clean-up events. To organize a free event in one’s community, interested parties can visit the ?One Team, One Planet? clean-up page to request Bridgestone?s presence. The program is the first of several moves by Bridgestone to reduce its environmental impact. The company has made a pledge to reduce its CO2 emissions by 25 percent before 2020 and has contributed to biodiversity protection by taking special care of Bridgestone-owned land. The manufacturer says its environmental mission is ?to help ensure a healthy environment for current and future generations.? Want to learn how to recycle your tires without buying a new one? Visit Earth911′s Recycling Directory to find a tire recycling solution near you. More Car Tips: Save $1,347 on Gas This Year

New App Targets Illegal Dumping
Photo: TrashOut Illegal dumping is a growing problem in the U.S. and abroad. It’s difficult for agencies to keep up with the new dump sites that continue to pop up daily, but now any person with a smartphone can help. The TrashOut app was developed like the Foursquare of waste reduction. Users can earn badges for reporting illegal dumping sites, taking pictures of waste, confirming dumping sites and cleaning up waste. Know the Laws: Solid Waste The app was developed in Slovakia, where over 130 illegal dumps were reported within the first two months of the app launch, according to the site. TrashOut recently expanded to the Czech Republic and Croatia, and the company plans to expand worldwide. In the United States, the app is available as a free download for iPhone. The Android version is still in development. The TrashOut app and website feature a Trash Map that shows nearby illegal dumping sites. Slovakia now has 375 reported dumping sites, most of which include user-submitted photos of waste. Dumping sites in the U.S. are still being compiled and verified and aren’t yet shown on the site’s map. Make the Most out of Waste: 7 Ways to Make Money by Going Green The site compiles its reports in the statistics column with a breakdown of illegal dumps by type. The leading European dump types are household, plastic, and glass. By raising awareness of illegal dumping activities, TrashOut plans to assist with global waste reduction. Here is a video from TrashOut explaining how the app works:

Get in on Composting Awareness Week
A Special Guest Post from Waste Management’s Eric Myers Organic waste is collected at Waste Management's Okeechobee Organics Recycling Facility from 42 Publix grocery stores in South Florida. Photo: Waste Management This week is International Composting Awareness Week, and it?s the perfect time to reflect on how everyone ? from families to major corporations ? is taking composting more seriously. According to the EPA, North Americans generate more than 80 million tons of organic waste (food, yard and wood waste) each year, or one third of the total waste stream. And in the United States, approximately a third of municipal solid waste is organic. This high volume of organic waste can be used as valuable material in lawn and garden supplements ? and even renewable energy ? through composting. Composting is one more example of how waste can be used as a valuable resource. This week, we at Waste Management challenge you to get started composting, if you haven?t already. Earth911 offers some great tips for composting in your garden or even in the city. Consider yourself a composting guru? There are always ways to improve your family compost, including composting items you didn?t think were compostable. According to Forrester research, 41 percent of consumers report an interest in or preference for purchasing from companies they perceive as ?sustainable.? Some businesses have made the switch to composting due to this business advantage, and some are even incorporating such ?Green? business practices due to customer demand. More and more restaurants, grocery stores and other companies in the food industry are beginning to explore innovations in composting each day. One company who has launched a composting program, with help from Waste Management, is Whole Foods Market. This grocery store chain captures food and packaging wastes in eight of its Chicago-area stores, converting 80 percent of its waste into soil material for use in landscaping. These Whole Foods stores have recovered and repurposed more than 1,100 tons of food wastes to date, which means that they now divert approximately 90 percent of their waste from landfills. The food service industry is not the only industry to take notice of composting. In fact, the green retail market, which includes organic composting, has been growing at a rate of 20 percent annually. Many companies, including Garick and Peninsula Compost Company, have emerged to profit from this growth in composting. Here at Waste Management, we?re also building our organic waste recovery facilities and investing in companies like Terrabon and Harvest Power. Unlike traditional composting companies, Terrabon and Harvest Power are seeking to transform organic waste into renewable energy. This is an exciting new field of waste recovery and renewable energy, and we anticipate we?ll see more similar innovations in the future as companies and individuals continue to make composting a priority. Eric Myers is director of operations for Waste Management’s Organic Recycling Solutions program.

VIDEO: College's Cafeterias Embrace Composting
An effort steered by students at The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va. has made the school’s dining facilities some of the most waste-conscious in the country. Collecting compost in cafeterias is a big part of that. Check Out: How to Make Top-Notch Compost for your Garden. The school hopped on the green track by bringing aboard student sustainability interns and going trayless in its two major dining facilities in 2008 and 2009, a move that severely cut back on dishwashing needs and saves 135,000 gallons of water a year. In January 2010, the college expanded its on-campus sustainability program, switching to compostable cups and serving dishes, supporting small-scale composting at the school’s on-campus garden, recycling all used cooking oil to be made into biofuel and diverting all other organic waste to an industrial composting facility in nearby Waverly, Va. “I believe dining services here generates 105 tons of organic waste very year,” said William & Mary student Aaron Bishop, one of the school’s sustainability interns. “A couple years ago, all that waste was going to the trash can, so that’s been a huge improvement.” The college saves $3,000 annually by cutting back on trash removal in favor of industrial composting, according to a W&M spokesperson. Don’t Miss: Mega-Machine Turns Compost, Looks Like Spaceship Check out this video from MeadWestvaco, the packaging company that manufactures William & Mary’s compostable food packaging, on how the school manages such an ambitious and comprehensive dining hall program: Homepage photo: Self-serve salad bar, Shutterstock