Trying to Recycle That Plastic Bag? The Odds Are Nine to One It’s Not Happening

Trying to Recycle That Plastic Bag? The Odds Are Nine to One It's Not Happening
It can feel impossible to get away from using plastic. In our consumer world, plastic is everywhere and deciding what to do with it, can be confusing. More than 4.83 million tons of plastic film has been generated to date and only about 9.1% of that plastic is recycled. The Ecology Center Helpdesk fields dozens… Read more »

What I Did for Plastic-Free July & How to Break Free from Plastic All Year

What I Did for Plastic-Free July & How to Break Free from Plastic All Year
 Nizam Porter was recently promoted to Youth Program Assistant at the Ecology Center. A Berkeley native, Nizam is passionate about building a strong, healthy, and conscious community. Here’s his reflection and photos from the Shoreline Cleanup he joined for Plastic-Free July. Get inspired and check out our next cleanup, September 11 at the South Berkeley Read more »

It’s time to reduce plastics and return to reality-based recycling

It's time to reduce plastics and return to reality-based recycling
The Ecology Center began one of the nation’s first curbside recycling programs, on the heels of the first Earth Day. As operators of that same recycling program through the decades, we have had a front-row seat to the recycling industry’s complex evolution. In those early days, we fought to be taken seriously and to demonstrate… Read more »

Berkeley Declares July Plastic Free – Responding to Urgent Need to Reduce Plastics

Berkeley Declares July Plastic Free - Responding to Urgent Need to Reduce Plastics
At City Council meeting on July 25, the City of Berkeley declared July Plastic Free Month. The Ecology Center has advocated and led events for Plastic Free July for several years, as part of a growing, international effort to reduce plastic. We strongly support and commend the city for being a pioneer in addressing the… Read more »

Listen Now: Audio Recording from Panel Event “Plastics: The Rising Tide”

Listen Now: Audio Recording from Panel Event "Plastics: The Rising Tide"
We recently hosted a panel event as part of Plastic-Free July to bring together knowledgable advocates to discuss big issues of plastic pollution, recycling, and solutions. This event’s point of departure: worldwide consumption of plastic continues to rise and our strategies for dealing with plastic waste are simply not keeping up. The panel of experts… Read more »