Although most of us know that recycling is important to the health of the planet, it can sometimes be difficult to get started with recycling in your home. Too many times it’s just easier to toss something in the trash than to take the extra couple of steps it would require in order to recycle it. In order to succeed with home recycling, it can often be easier if your family adopts a team approach. Not only will starting a family recycling project spread the work around between all family members, but it will also make the entire process a lot more fun.
Plan a Family Meeting
The best way of embarking on a family recycling project is to first hold a family meeting. Include all members of the family, so that everyone can provide their thoughts and input on the subject. Start by stating that as a family, there is a lot of waste that could be prevented if everyone just took a few extra minutes to recycle. It can be helpful to visit your local recycling center or do a search online for recycling information and tips prior to having your family meeting, so that you can share ideas and recycling techniques for everyone to consider. Then, as a group, decide upon a goal. You might choose to start small and set a goal as a family that all aluminum cans will be collected and recycled. Or, you might choose a more ambitious approach and set up a full-scale effort for recycling and reusing everything you possibly can. Your family’s attitude towards the project as well as your current style of living will factor into your actual method of implementing your recycling project but be sure that everyone is on board with the idea.
How to Begin
Depending on your specific family recycling goals, you might need some equipment or storage space to get started. For example, if you are simply collecting aluminum cans, you might only need some clear plastic trash bags. If you are taking a more full-scale approach to recycling, you might need to clean the garage in order to make room for separate recycling bins for each type of material. Or, if you have decided not to throw kitchen waste and yard waste in the trash, you might need to do some research on setting up a compost pile. You can make this research and preparation more fun for the whole family by giving everyone specific assignments. Then, call a weekly meeting to check on the family’s progress.
Reward Yourselves for a Job Well Done
It can add a lot of fun and interest to a family recycling project if you attach a few rewards to your overall goals. For example, go out to dinner as a family each time you make a trip to the recycling center to drop off all your collected items. Or, give each family member points each time they recycle an item, and let them keep track and trade in points for small rewards. This can make the entire project exciting and fun, as well as help to insure a higher level of success.
Article written by Jessica Ackerman of WallDecorandHomeAccents.com – a wall art store which has a huge selection of tropical fish wall art and large outdoor wall art.
