Change The World Wednesday (#CTWW)

Welcome to Change The World Wednesday (#CTWW)! If this is your first visit, please click HERE for information and a complete list of all the challenges we've taken on so far.

There's a lot of great information in this post and I encourage you to read through it ... however, if you'd rather jump straight to the current challenge, you can do so by clicking here: This Week's Challenge

Last week we joined Mrs. Green for the first phase of National Zero Waste Week (#NZWW). When I last visited the page, there were 50 comments about actions being taken to reduce waste while away from home. Mrs. Green says that, in addition to the #NZWW web site, there were a bunch of people committing to the event on the Facebook page which means that over 300 people are participating. Add them to the fabulous efforts by our own Reduce Footprints' readers and wow ... it's a tremendous effort. I think, however, that Mrs. Green is going to have to rename her yearly event ... it's no longer a "national" effort ... thanks to all of you, it's now an "international" effort.

We call them the #CTWW Gang ... they are folks who tweet about our challenges on Twitter using the hashtag #CTWW. They are an elite group of "greenies" ... passing the word and encouraging others to join in. If you are on Twitter, these are wonderful people to follow. Let's meet them now:

@yan_tougas @clothmamajess @ecobears @whopaysthepiper @rubbishgeek @waylandcook @dpixel @nonmom @givetreegifts @pinkladyapril @rewinn

@peopletowels @jnjgogreen @pfwoman @lynn_stone @russechd @hshawjr @noteasy2begreen @gogreenbeans @theorganicblond @ambianceeco @ggirlggreen

@nurturedbeauty @waxelene @littlegreenblog @gwened02 @skipbang @oneadayart @groovygreenlivi @envirofusion @tiffanystoybox @longpointescape

Our Honor Society is made up of people who write articles and/or post comments about our challenge. Let's see what they had to say:

EcoGrrl committed to carrying a "Spork" while away from home. Nice!

In this POST, Rachel says that she spends most of her time at home so reducing waste away from home is a challenge. But she did find one item which she can improve upon ... something she carries in her purse ... something which is a single-use item ... something which comes in plastic containers. Can you guess what it is?

Argentum Vulgaris has a tough time with waste in Brazil ... the country seems, at times, determined to create it. For example, in this POST you'll learn that salt/pepper shakers and condiment bottles are replaced with small packets in restaurants ... and it's mandated by law. But AV finds a way to meet the challenge away from home. Check out his post to find out how.

Alicia has some great ideas for reducing waste away from home. She suggests taking your own cloth napkins to avoid using paper ones in restaurants. She also suggests bringing along your own "doggie bag" containers for leftover food. Both Alicia and her husband carry their own reusable mugs to work, reducing even more waste. Great job, Alicia!

Jessica is back from vacation ... welcome "home" Jessica! She says that she is jumping right back into our challenges.

Nonmom commits to bringing reusable bags to the grocery store and buying local. If you've noticed how many plastic bags a person uses in one trip to the grocery store, then you know that Nonmom's efforts will reduce a lot of waste. Whoot! She is also committing to carrying her own reusable mug. Yay!

Tanya is focusing her efforts towards all the disposable items one receives in a restaurant: straws and their wrappers, coasters for drinks, to-go boxes, napkins, paper menus, etc. Some of the items she simply refuses ... like straws. With other items, she brings her own ... for example, cloth napkins. She also shared an idea from the #NZWW site ... a mobile compost container. Now that sounds interesting!

Lynn Stone is doing many of the same things mentioned by others. She's kicking it up a notch, however, and doing something which I believe will have an even greater impact. Here's a hint ... she'll be doing it at work with her co-workers. Can you guess what it is? Click HERE to find out!

@envirofusion left a great comment: "BYOR - Bring your own Reusables. Every day and everywhere, even when you travel. Let your lifestyle be infectious and share the zero waste concept with family and friends." I love that!!

Amy and her family are very conscientious when they go out to restaurants. They search out restaurants that use straws, utensils, etc. made from recycled products. They have also found a great use for those large plastic cups that many establishments use for drinks. Read about all of their efforts HERE. Amy has another suggestion which I think is wonderful ... she suggests that we share the following link with restaurant owners: http://letsgogreen.biz/pages/utensils/PET_cups.html. It's a page where they can get Eco-friendly service items. Thanks, Amy!

Tiffany and the boys (Tristin and Tyler) were going to a BBQ and they planned to refuse disposable utensils. In addition, the boys will be carrying reusable water bottles ... click HERE to see them talk about it.

Kristina reduces waste by sending her child to school with a cloth napkin and reusable utensils. And, in this POST, she talks about all of the ways one can reduce waste while on vacation. It's full of great ideas! For example ... do you recycle when you're staying in a hotel? She does!!

Stephanie (aka Good Girl Gone Green) has taken this challenge to a new level. She and her husband have committed to not only reducing their waste (both at home and away) but they have started Project Green Foot where they will attempt to calculate their carbon footprint over the next year. Wow! So, how will they do it? One of the most important ways to succeed, according to Stephanie, is preparation. She has a great idea in this POST ... “Zero Waste” goodie bags.

Rewinn is going to reduce waste by carrying his own reusable coffee mug. He's going to further reduce waste by purchasing that mug at a thrift/second hand store. WhooHoo! He calls it Coffee Cup Love!

If you are away from home, and generate compostable waste, but there isn't a composter available, what do you do? Find out what Jen does HERE. Wow! And be sure to read through the entire post, she offers all kinds of ways to reduce waste. Thanks, Jen!

Great job everyone. As always, if you wrote a post I have Stumbled, Tweeted and Facebooked it. You, too, can help spread the word by using the share features at the end of this post.

Are you ready for more?

This Week's Challenge:

The second phase of National Zero Waste Week is all about updating everyone on how the commitment we made last week is working out. Here you go:

This week we want to know how it's going. Please visit the National Zero Waste Week site HERE and leave a comment about how your committed efforts have worked out. If you write an article about it, be sure to leave the link. Once you're done, come back here and tell us as well. The idea, here, is to talk about what worked, what didn't, etc. so that everyone can learn the most effective ways to reduce waste away from home.

And if you missed last week's challenge ... it isn't too late to participate. Click HERE and make a commitment!

Until next time ...

WE'RE CHANGING THE WORLD ... ONE CHALLENGE AT A TIME!!