An outdoor gym has recently opened in Tower Hamlets, east London, which has been constructed almost entirely from the metal of confiscated and surrendered knives and blades.
How to recycle your shoes
According to a study conducted by Oxfam, every person in the UK owns seven pairs of unused shoes, on average. In fact, there are so many unworn or unused shoes in British households that, put heel to toe in a line, they’d stretch all the way round the world. So, what happens to these shoes when we do decide to throw them out? Sadly, most still find their way to landfill – even those which have plenty of life left in them. These shoes then take a very long time to decompose. Running shoes, for example, can take 1,000 years to break down on landfill.
How can you avoid this and recycle your shoes instead? Find out below.
How to upcycle car tyres
Due to its resilient nature, rubber is the perfect material for upcycling projects, and vehicle tyres can therefore be easily reused once they have become unroadworthy. Repurposing vehicle tyres is a nice alternative to sending them to landfill – an unfortunate ending for many tyres worldwide. When tyres are recycled, they are often shredded and used for producing playground surfaces, road embankments and synthetic turf. Why not reuse them before that stage and lengthen their life even more? Give some of these upcycling ideas a go.
Wardrobe recycling tips: clothes, bedding & accessories
Many wardrobes are fit to burst, and some of us put off having a sort-out as we’re not quite sure what to do with each item we’d like to get rid of. Instead of putting it off any longer, or resorting to chucking it all in the household bin, take a look at our wardrobe recycling guide below and do the best you can by your old clothes and accessories.
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Travellers fly-tip next to London’s Olympic Park
It is alleged that a large group of travellers has recently been illegally collecting waste from people who paid to have their waste removed, then fly-tipping it where they were parked up, near the Olympic Park in Stratford, east London.
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5 easy ways to be more environmentally friendly
When it comes to protecting the environment, the smallest of changes to the way we do things in our day-to-day lives can make a big difference, and the more of us who make these changes, the better. We have collected together five simple ideas of ways to be kinder to the environment below, so we can all start those changes today.
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Zero Waste Week 2017: Win a zero waste lunch kit!
This competition has now closed. Thank you to all who entered.
September means Zero Waste Week – a week we love, and always get involved with. Alongside sharing relevant content all week on our social channels this year, we decided it would also be fun to give away a Zero Waste Lunch Kit.
Of all the zero waste challenges in life, lunch is a big one. After all, how many of us grab lunch from a local shop or café, which involves all manner of ‘single-use’ plastics? Even if you pack your own lunch at home, avoiding waste can be very tricky unless you plan it well – many people use cling film, foil, and sandwich bags, purely out of habit.
So, how can you pack a zero waste lunch? With a zero waste lunch kit, of course! With the right kit, you can easily pack a lunch at home, avoiding all unnecessary waste.
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How to pack a zero waste lunch
By deciding to take a packed lunch to work instead of buying a pre-packaged lunch from a local shop, you are already taking a step in the right direction of avoiding unnecessary waste; takeaway lunch options always involve some form of ‘disposable’ wrapping – be it a polystyrene carton, a paper bag or a cardboard box. Of course, if you are comfortable doing so, you could ask the staff at your local cafe if they would be happy to place your takeout lunch in a container you provide, but not everyone is happy doing that. For the purpose of this blog post, let’s concentrate on packed lunches you make at home – after all, they are a cheaper alternative, and they leave you in full control of the waste you do or don’t produce.
Containers for zero waste lunches
Making the change to zero waste packed lunches can seem daunting, but just a few simple changes can make a big difference. Once you have got yourself set up with the basics, it should be fairly easy. I’d recommend the below items for your lunch kit. And don’t forget a cloth bag to store it all in!
Coca-Cola ad made entirely from 100% recyclable packaging
Beverage retail giant, Coca-Cola Great Britain has released a new advert made using its 100 per cent recyclable bottles.
Entitled Love Story, the new advertisement follows the tale of two plastic bottles who are able to fall in love thanks to being recycled over and over again. The aim of the ad is to highlight the value of packaging, the importance of recycling, and to reinforce the fact that Coca-Cola’s packaging is 100 per cent recyclable and can therefore be recycled many times over.
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10 plastic items you can easily cut out of your life
Humans produce 300 million tonnes of plastic per year – 5 million tonnes of which ends up in our oceans. This is a huge, worldwide issue that isn’t going to go away, and so it’s time we all made a change. The use of plastic is mainly habitual, and so by breaking our usual daily habits and making new ones, we can make a real difference, one step at a time. Below are 10 plastic items you could easily cut out of your life, with the minimal fuss. Why not start by eliminating these items and see where you end up?
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