​Is it even worth getting started on local litter clean up activities when globally, mounting trash is such a massive problem? Yes it is, and here's why:

​At times we are bombarded with so many negative statistics, articles, videos and comments relating to the state of the plante, that it all seems just too overwhelming. It happens to me often, but then I think "every single piece of litter on the street, in the forest and in the ocean was put there by someone not entirely unlike me. The same way it got there, it can be retrieved - piece by piece."

Start Small
Is there a lot of work to be done? Certainly. Is it worth the time and effort? Unquestionably. This is our planet, our home, our street and our own back yard. It's easy to post angry and frustrated comments on social media, but ultimately it's up to you and me to take action to make things better.

Think Big
The great news is that if even a few people start taking direct action such as joining local clean up initiatives, talking to and pressuring municipalities and telling their friends and family that every one of us can have an immediate and direct impact, then we can effect change on a Global scale. It all starts with me & you!

Good Citizenship
Wikipedia defines this as when one properly fulfills his or her role as a citizen. There are many opinions as to what constitutes a good citizen. Theodore Roosevelt said, "The first requisite of a good citizen ... is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight." A great way to do that is to get involved with your local community.

Beyond Litter
Why focus on litter when there are so many even more pressing environmental concerns? It's a great question. One of the reasons I have chose to focus on litter is that I feel it's something so very easy to control, without even changing our lifestyle, just our habits, and if we are persuasive, the habits of our friends and family too. But it goes beyond the local manifestations of piled up kerb side trash; if we no longer accept such sights, we start to grow more aware of our surroundings and our impact on our environment, natural and man-made. Then we can start to shift our current paradigm and all live with more quality and abundance.

You have options that will keep your mattress out of the landfill. With a two-fold approach to reduce waste and buy environmentally-friendly mattresses, you can make a difference.

1. Donate the Old
Many national and local charity or thrift organizations accept mattress donations. Be sure your mattress is stain, tear, and odor free. If you live in an area with bed bugs, mattress donations may not be accepted. To save yourself the hassle of loading and hauling your mattress, call ahead to make sure it will be accepted. Do NOT leave your old mattress behind a charity store after hours. You may be leaving them with the problem of disposal and most likely it will end up in the landfill.

2. Look Up Recycling Facilities
The parts and components of many different types of mattresses can be recycled. For example:

• Steel Springs: Innerspring mattresses can contain as much as 20 pounds of recyclable steel.
• Foam: Foam can be shredded to make bike helmets and car seats.
• Natural Fibers: Cotton and wool mattress covers can be shredded and used to make new textiles.

The trick is finding a facility to do the recycling because breaking down a mattress takes time and space. Call your local recycling facility or get online to find the closest mattress recycling location. Many require a recycling fee of anywhere between $20-$40 and may include pick up for another small fee.

3. Think Outside the Box
Mattresses are full of components, from braiding and buttons to nails and screws that can be used for other projects. Innersprings can be used to make wreaths or transformed into a picture holding room divider. Memory foam can be used to make a dog bed or chair cushions. Wood slats come in handy for all kinds of home projects. If you’re up to dismantling the mattress yourself, with a little creativity, you can probably use most of the components around your home.

4. Choose an Environmentally-Friendly Mattress
​The truth is that there’s no mattress that’s 100 percent green, organic, or environmentally friendly, but there are some that come close. All-natural latex mattresses are derived from the sap of the rubber tree. After the sap goes through a series of manufacturing processes, it makes a mattress that’s both durable and comfortable. These mattresses are biodegradable, leaving behind a white residue.

If you are a lifetime smoker, as I am, quitting can be difficult.

But it should not be difficult to see that cigarette ends are litter. Just look around the entrances to buildings (where people cannot smoke inside), or in parking areas – even in scenic places – where people have decided that their car ash-tray is full. Take a look at your own ash-tray or around the places where you usually smoke.

Cigarette filters are not as bad as nuclear waste, but they take around seven years to bio-degrade. Some of our cigarette ends might stay around longer than we older smokers do. There are cases where fish have choked to death on them - at least that stops them from getting hooked, I suppose.

Smokers already suffer social stigma. Cigarette ends everywhere just make it worse – another reason for non-smokers to think that we are low-life.

I am a heavy smoker. It is more than 40 years since I dropped a cigarette end anywhere except in a proper receptacle. If I am far from receptacles, I dispose carefully of any burning ash and residual shreds of tobacco, then the filter goes into the plastic around the lower part of the cigarette packet or even into my “butt pocket”.

​No, they do not make my clothes smell, although that might depend on the brand and how carefully I remove the shreds of tobacco. For longer outings, I carry a portable ash-tray with lid – there are lots of options available, even a little plastic bag would do. These days, there are even start up companies producing pocket ashtray, I rather like these from Portuguese non profit Biataki.

If dog-walkers are required to collect their dogs' waste, why not cigarette smokers?

Cigarette ends are litter – don't drop them. Please! Instead, why not help pick them up, take a photo and share it today with the hashtag

Cleanup events are one of the most powerful ways of spreading a positive message and being an actual Litter Hero. Whether an event is attended by 2 people or 200 people, the statement is clear: 

"We have a litter problem here, and together we can make this part of the world cleaner".

LitterHero clean up events are design for maximum positive impact and minimum hassle. We do this by limiting numbers to around 30 people max and scheduling at a time when people with children can also attend, usually Saturdays around 10:30 am.

Another powerful driver is that we like to keep our events very short! 30 minutes of clean up time is enough for even a small group to make a big impact and also keep people of all ages engaged and more importantly, increase the desire to clean up even more!

In a nutshell, here's the secret sauce:

1. Small groups
2. Family friendly scheduling
3. Limited duration

If you would like to host your own litter clean up events through a local #LitterHero group or on your own, here is a good article to help you get started.

The #LitterBike concept is all about putting litter in the bin and the fun between your legs! If you commute by bike it's even easier! Here's how to get started.
​
This is concept is ideally suited to a city, touring or hybrid bicycle with a rear rack! All you need is a pannier or light weight trash bin, a bin bag and a litter picker.

Step 1 - fix your pannier or bin to the rear rack.
Step 2 - Line your pannier or bin with a bin bag.
Step 3 - Get picking!
Step 4 - Snap a photo and share with with the tag #LitterHero and #LitterBike!

If you like this idea and want to get involved or to start sharing your own LitterBike actions, get in touch!

A quick web search for "How to reduce waste at home" comes up with about 203,000,000 results, so there is plenty of material out there! Before getting into the literature, it's very helpful to keep in mind the 5 R's of Waste Management:
​

1. REFUSE what you don't need
2. REDUCE what you do need
3. REUSE what you already have
4. RECYCLE what you cannot refuse, reduce, or reuse
5. ROT the rest

You can find some more helpful information on Zero Waste initiatives and lifestyle in our Resources section. And you can always get in touch to share your own ideas and experiences!

Picking up a bag and litter picker to grab some trash off your street is a great feel good activity but to really spread the message, nothing beats a local litter clean up event. To make sure you make it a great occasion for all involved, here are 7 Keys for a Successful Cleanup event:

1) Be willing to do the activity alone, and enjoy it!

2) Post your event publicly or invite specific people. You can use the LitterHero events calendar to share your event. Make the time, place, duration and equipment required explicitly clear to everyone you tell about it.

3) INVITE people. Don’t coerce, try to sell it to them, or overly control their participation. When invited, most people will bring something to the clean up effort that really makes really work.

4) Keep it simple. Cleaning up trash is easy. All you need are garbage bags, places to put the trash, and gloves (rakes and shovels can’t hurt either!) Tell potential participants that these are the raw materials, but bring enough yourself to cover half-a-dozen people who come without .

5) Have fun doing it. After all, you and everyone else will be actively making the world a better place… really. MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE! (this is what inspires me, and probably you, and probably most people who do things like this).

6) Tell lots of people, including the press. Just call them up and tell them what, when, where you are doing what you are doing. Even if you wind up alone out there, you will still peak interest, and people may want to join you next time. Forward chunks of the press release to any news organizations you contact (having something written that can be “cut and pasted” can increase likelihood of publication).

finally–and probably most important–

7) Remind people and yourself that what you are doing matters by telling incidents and specifics about how it matters to you. Just the simple truth will inspire others. You can talk about what you have done to date, and the people you met along the way. 

Once people experience their own daily ability to make a difference, they will probably keep it up on their own - and maybe do even do a project in their neck of the woods…

If it is easy enough for you, bring some food treats for other participants as a surprise. Maybe cookies or little chocolates or something– cheap and easy is my motto on this. You can always go for coffee afterward if that works better too…

Source Litterproject.com