Started from the Bottom: All great career paths must start somewhere.

When it comes to sustainability and “going green,” we often think of recycling. For some of us, it has been ingrained into our daily habits that water bottles do not belong in the trash. We don’t have to think twice about recycling plastic milk containers or cardboard boxes. For others, recycling is a rather new phenomenon, but one that is catching on quickly. Recycling seems to be the end-all answer to becoming environmentally friendly. But why do we place so much emphasis on recycling when we can do better? The saying goes, “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” right? Why do we focus solely on the “recycle” part, when there are two steps prior to this that could help so much more?

“Reduce” is pretty self-explanatory. If we use less, we generate less waste in general. “Reuse” is a bit more interesting because it can have two meanings. Conventional reuse involves using the item again for the same function, such as reusing the tupperware you store your leftovers in instead of wasting new containers every time. New-life reuse is where you can be a bit more creative and use an object for an entirely different function. An example of new-life reuse could be turning your empty glass milk bottle into a flower vase. This form of reuse gives new life to old but still fully functional products without reprocessing them. Reusing products saves time, energy, resources and money! 

Reducing and reusing allow products to be used to their fullest extent and decreases the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators. It keeps the environment cleaner on a local and global scale. Focusing on reducing and reusing prevents pollution caused by harvesting new raw materials. Avoiding this harvesting saves energy. Saving energy helps sustain the environment for future generations by reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global climate change. The reasons are endless for why reducing and reusing should be your primary options in going green.

Disposable products have taken over our society to provide ultimate convenience. There are many ways to avoid becoming victim to these products. You can bring reusable bags to the grocery store, drink your coffee in a reusable stainless steel mug, bring a reusable water bottle around with you, avoid plastic straws and buy glass products over plastic. Borrowing items from friends or buying used products are also great examples of reuse. The most effective way to lessen waste is to not create it in the first place. Try to be mindful of ways you can reduce and reuse before you recycle.

SYRIZA rising:  The ascendant party can’t rest on their laurels.

On Monday, February 2, President Obama presented his 2016 budget to Congress. In the proposal, President Obama called for a $3.99 trillion budget paid for by a bunch of new taxes. The new budget represents a 67.5 percent rise in spending from 2009 – when President Obama entered office. The President didn’t skimp on anything – calling for both more domestic and military spending and refusing to touch entitlements. Without reform, Social Security is basically going to run out of money by 2017, forcing senior citizen benefits to either be paid for out of general tax revenue or to be cut. A responsible budget should at least attempt to make our current programs viable so that the millions of people who depend on them are not left in the cold.

To his credit, President Obama does pay for this spending with $1.44 trillion in tax increases over the next ten years. He would raise the capital gains tax to 28 percent – it was 15 percent when he entered office making him responsible for almost doubling it. He would set the minimum individual tax rate to 30 percent. He would reduce or eliminate tax deductions for things such as retirement accounts, which is expected to raise $746 billion. The list continues with more taxes and rule changes designed to extract more money out of people and companies.

It is not all bad. U.S. companies currently have over $2 trillion of cash stored overseas; money on which they have already paid taxes. Right now, if they tried to bring that cash back to the United States, they would be forced to pay another 35 percent tax on it. The President proposed temporarily lowering it to 14 percent for current profits and 19 percent on future overseas profits and using this new money to finance infrastructure upgrades. This is a smart way to get companies to bring back money they say they want to invest domestically and to pay for needed upgrades to airports and bridges.

The biggest problem with the budget isn’t any of the proposals but the signal it sends to Republicans and the country. The President had to know that the Republicans who now control Congress were not going to respond well to this budget – and they haven’t. The President could have used this as an opportunity to reach out to the new Congress and show a willingness to work with them and actually get something done. Maybe even pass the so-called “Grand Bargain” that politicians have been talking about since the fall. Instead, the President took this time to show that he lacks the will to push any serious reform. He failed to address entitlements entirely – which will either keep eating a growing percentage of all tax revenue or start severely cutting programs. And he chose to send Republicans a budget proposal that he – and everyone else – knew would never have a chance of passing through Congress without being completely rewritten. Most likely, Congress is going to start over with a completely new budget plan and we will risk losing the good ideas with the bad. 

Few shoppers consider sustainability when purchasing new clothing, but surprisingly the fashion industry has a major environmental impact. From production to transport to disposal, the fashion industry is the third most polluting industry after oil and agriculture. 

The impact of clothing begins with the production of fabric materials. Growing natural fibers is incredibly resource-intensive, with cotton alone responsible for a quarter of the pesticides used in the United States. Textile dyeing, which is responsible for 20 percent of industrial water pollution, also adds to the industry’s environmental impact. Factory-made clothing is extremely inefficient in its fabric usage. For each garment produced, 15 to 20 percent of the fabric is thrown away as scraps. With one billion garments coming out of China alone each year, that’s a lot of wasted material.

With the growth of fast fashion and cheap clothing retailers like Forever 21 and H&M, society has begun to see clothing as disposable. New wardrobes can be easily bought to follow changing trends and torn clothing can be discarded instead of repaired and worn again. The growth of this disposable mindset of fashion has lead to a major increase of perfectly good clothing in landfills. In fact, the average American throws away 68 pounds of unwanted clothing each year. Currently only 15 pounds of discarded clothing in the United States is sold in thrift and consignment shops. As clothing becomes cheaper to buy new, the perceived resale value of unwanted clothes has decreased considerably. Cheap clothing also removes the need to buy used clothing at discounted prices. Only 12 to 15 percent of Americans shop at resale shops, creating a major gap in the circle of recycling. 

Many clothing companies have acknowledged the environmental impacts of the fashion industry and have begun working towards more sustainable practices. Sustainably harvested fibers, waterless dye processes and zero-waste manufacturing are all being tested out by various clothing brands. Consumer involvement is also a vital step in decreasing the environmental impact of the fashion industry. A movement away from the disposable mindset of clothing will help address the massive amount of waste created by discarded clothing. Quality of materials and construction should be highly valued and clothing should be seen as an investment. Higher quality garments will last much longer before fading or ripping. Consumers will also be more likely to repair a piece of clothing if they see it as a quality investment. 

When a piece of clothing is discarded there are many ways to keep it out of a landfill. If the clothing is too worn or stained to be worn again it can be taken to a textile recycling center where it will be made into new fabric. If the clothing is still wearable, it can be donated to thrift stores (like Goodwill) or resold at consignment shops or through online retailers. In order to complete the circle of recycling more shoppers need to purchase used clothing. Used clothing stores today are much more upscale than many people imagine. Chains like Second Time Around, which has stores in 12 states, and the online retailer Tradesy.com, specialize in reselling brand name clothing for a fraction of the original price. These new resale stores simplify the shopping experience by eliminating the need to sift through racks and racks of clothes to find quality pieces. 

While sustainability may not be a major consideration when purchasing clothing, simple measures can be taken to decrease the impact our clothing choices have on the environment. Shoppers should consider sustainable brands and used clothing stores when making purchases. Many rips can be easily repaired at home or by a tailor, greatly extending the life of a piece of clothing. Finally, unwanted clothing should always be recycled, donated or resold to ensure that it stays out of landfills.