We live in a throw it away world. Nothing is made to last these days, as how would retailers make any money?!
Something stops working…”Just get a new one”. Clothes get a hole, stain or fade…”Throw them out”. Not a thought goes into where all these things being thrown out go. Once the truck empties your bin it’s no longer your problem, right?! Wrong! We are filling landfills faster every year and some believe, despite New Zealand having more space for landfill than other, more densely populated areas, we will run out of space within the next 50 years!
Most of us know about trying to Reduce the amount of waste we produce by choosing less packaging and I’m sure we all aware of Recycling goods so that they can be melted down to make new goods. But how many of us are active in Reusing or Repurposing our unwanted items? These days you hear words like ‘Upcycling’ and ‘Shabby Chic’ to describe the popular trend of re-purposing items rather than simply throwing them away. However, rather than simply being the latest fashion trend or fad, upcycling or re-purposing is a great way to not only reduce your waste and carbon footprint, but can also be a lot of fun!
Getting children involved in these activities is also great to help teach them about the importance of reducing our waste and how easy it can be to turn something you no longer need or that no longer works into something new.
One of the biggest problem waste items is tyres. Some are shredded and turned into soft fall surfaces in playgrounds but our waste far outnumbers the need for this. Tyres can be turned into a huge variety of things from playground or workout equipment to planters, furniture and garden ornaments.