For Students
Just because you’re in school doesn’t mean you can’t make a difference. At Earth911, we’ve seen incredible students lead community cleanups, encourage their friends and family to recycle and even start their own environmental companies! (See our favorite stories below.) Making an impact starts with learning the facts. Use these listed resources to become the ultimate eco-expert!
Play the Recycling Game
Recycling is one of the easiest ways to help the environment and contribute to your community. But what exactly goes into the bin? Ms. Mola will show you just how simple it can be to sort your recyclables. Play her game “We Can Waste Wise” and see if you can top other students’ scores!
The Recyclopedia: Quick Terms to Know
Biodegradable — Description for anything that can be broken down by living organisms such as bacteria or fungi. Some biodegradable materials can serve as the ingredients for compost.
SEE: Biodegradable Cheat Sheet
Composting — Process by which food scraps from a home or business are disposed of naturally to produce toxin-free and nutrient-rich fertilizer for gardening and other uses. Compost reduces your solid waste. Compost is a mixture that consists largely of decayed organic matter and is used for fertilizing and conditioning land.
SEE: Everything You Need to Know About Composting
Electronic Waste — Commonly referred to as e-waste. Many states have outlawed throwing e-waste in the trash because it contains hazardous materials.
READ: Top Electronics Questions Answered
Hazardous Waste — A product in a home (household hazardous waste or HHW) or business that is ignitable, corrosive, reactive or toxic (e.g. used motor oil, oil-based paint, auto batteries, gasoline, pesticides, etc). These products are damaging to the environment if disposed of improperly.
READ: The Lowdown on Hazardous Materials
Post-Consumer — A term used to describe material that is being reused/recycled after it has been in the consumer’s hands (e.g., a newspaper going back to the paper mill to be recycled into new recycled content paper products).
SEE: Awesome DIY Reuse Ideas
Recyclable — A term used to designate that a product can be recycled. This term may be misleading as there may not be a recycling program that takes the identified material in the consumer’s area.
READ: Recycling 101
Recycle — Process by which a material is diverted from landfills and instead reprocessed into a new product.
SEE: Recycling in Action
Three R’s — This is a group of terms crucial to sustainability: reduce, reuse and recycle. The first step is reducing things like energy use and waste output, then reusing products for a second purpose, and finally recycling them so they are diverted from landfills.
READ: The Basics of the 3 R’s
Vermicomposting — The process whereby worms feed on slowly decomposing materials (e.g. vegetable scraps) in a controlled environment to produce a nutrient-rich soil amendment.
READ: I’ve Got Worms! Composting and You
Our Favorite Student Stories
Need some inspiration? Over the years we’ve written about kids and teens doing amazing things for the environment. Here are some of the most memorable:
