Many of us have heard of the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” scheme and try to live by it within our households. There are many products and items around your house that you may not know can actually be sent to different companies and be reused or recycled. 

 

Crayons 

Crayons may not be a common item you throw away however, over half a million pounds of crayons are thrown away every year. These will never biodegrade so the waxy substance is left in landfill and is now causing issues. Instead of throwing those crayons out send them to the Crayon Initiative. They are a company who will melt crayons down and remanufacture them. These are then sent off to art projects or to children’s hospitals across the US.

 

Prescription drugs 

In the UK we do not have a government scheme to collect unused or unwanted prescription drugs. It is estimated that £800 million worth of prescription drugs are wasted and binned every year. A charity called “Inter Care – Medical Aid for Africa” collects unused/unwanted medications from doctors surgeries around the UK and delivers them for free to over 100 health centers in sub-Saharan Africa. 

 

Wine Corks

The glass in wine bottles is a very common recyclable item. The cork however, often gets overlooked and simply binned. Donate them to a company such as “Recork” who will use it to make recycled materials. 

 

Mobile Phones 

According to recycling-guide.org.uk most people in the UK now own a mobile phone which can be recycled. An easy way to reuse it is to pass it down to family or friends however, there are many places and sites which offer to buy your old phone as they will recycle it for parts. Envirophone will send you a box and freepost envelope for you to send your phone to them. Envirophone also make a charitable donation with every phone. 

 

Glasses

Eyeglasses are an item many of us wouldn’t think to recycle. Visionaidoverseas.org is a charity that will take old spectacles and use them to help those in struggling countries to see better. 

Their website offers a tracker to find your nearest local recycling center or you can ask for a postal pack which you can send your glasses too them.