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15 Mar 00 - changing behaviors; green building; batteries; pollution prevention ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- The first three postings are in response to the 3/9/00 posting from Christine Byrch, with the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, seeking examples of programs in the U.S. that have successfully changed behaviors and attitudes, in regards to waste. -------------------- >From Meg Lynch, Metro Waste Reduction, Planning and Outreach, Portland, OR: There's a guy I ran across while doing research for a waste prevention project named Doug McKenzie-Mohr, an environmental psychologist based in Fredericton, New Brunswick, who hosts a web site called Fostering Sustainable Behavior, which is devoted to precisely this topic. The address is http://www.cbsm.com ------------------- >From Barbara Frierson, city of Alameda, CA: I don't have a case study, but there is a website that contains a whole book on Fostering Sustainable Behavior, particularly regarding environmental issues: http://www.cbsm.com I have read the first few chapters, and thought it was very good. Note from Tom: This is the same site mentioned above in Meg's message. It is also mentioned in the posting below. -------------------- >From Caroline Truth Brimblecombe, Washington County, MN: I am assuming you are looking for examples of campaigns that measured the effectiveness of the campaign (e.g., pre-and post tests, etc). There are many good campaigns out there, but since many may have not been able to measure, I have first given examples of campaigns where I know they have measured effectiveness/awareness, and next given some general sites. The State of Minnesota has conducted numerous successful waste reduction campaigns and has measured their effectiveness. For more information on their current campaign, or to ask about past campaigns, contact Monte Hilleman at: monte [DOT] hilleman [AT] moea [DOT] state [DOT] mn [DOT] us The current campaign's web site is located at http://www.reduce.org Additional resources can be found at http://www.seek.state.mn.us/ and http://www.moea.state.mn.us The Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minnesota) metropolitan area has also conducted very successful waste reduction campaigns, and tested awareness pre-and post-campaign. The Solid Waste Management Coordinating Board coordinated these campaigns, and the advertising company of Lynch Jarvis Jones created them (LJJ's Bob Ballard can give you more info on how these and similar campaigns' effectiveness was measured - 119 N 4th St., Minneapolis, MN, 55401, USA, +1 612-371-0014). Monte can probably tell you something about those campaigns, too (or refer you to the right person). The following web site contains case studies, articles and other useful information on fostering sustainable behavior (including waste reduction): http://www.cbsm.com You have probably heard of Global Action Plan for the Earth and its EcoTeams (the above web site also contains a case study on it). Here is a blurb from Global Action Plan: "In the United States, on average, households that participate in EcoTeams produce 42 percent less garbage, use 25 percent less water, produce 16 percent less carbon dioxide, and use 16 percent less fuel for transportation. These households also saved annually $400 U.S. Similar positive impacts have been experienced by other countries in which the Global Action Plan operates." George Dreckmann, recycling coordinator, City of Madison, Wisconsin, has used the EcoTeam approach as one of many in his city. His e-mail address is: gdreckmann (AT) ci (DOT) madison (DOT) mn (DOT) us While not specifically linked to an awareness campaign yet, I thought you might like to know about the work that the states of Minnesota and Iowa have funded, quantifying the broader resource conservation benefits of waste reduction. Contact Karen Harrington at the State of Minnesota (they have produced a full report and a nice synopsis), at: karen [D O T] harrington [A T] moea [D O T] state [D O T] mn [D O T] us Karen also knows a lot about performance measurement and evaluation techniques. The Iowa work is summarized on the web site of the Tellus Institute, at: http://www.tellus.org Iowa has incorporated waste reduction as a key item in its Climate Change Action Plan. The Center for a New American Dream website may also contain some useful info, though they don't specifically focus on waste: http://www.newdream.org/ The Center is "a not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping individuals and institutions reduce and shift consumption to enhance quality of life and protect the environment." Hope this is useful. E-mail: ctbrim [AT] uswest [DOT] net ------------------- >From Kate Dickerson, Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center, Seattle, WA: We are trying to compile information on a pretty interesting topic: building technologies. More specifically, we are trying to find out what information is available on financial incentive programs, other than tax credits, that support the adoption of building technologies with P2 (pollution prevention), and/or other environmental benefits (possibly including energy efficiency) that are not well known, and/or face capital cost barriers. Any information that can be provided on the programs themselves (if there are any out there), criteria used, and type of activities supported would be greatly appreciated. If you are wondering what I mean by "innovative building technologies," the best way I can answer that is with an example - roof top gardens is one that comes to mind. I'm sure that there are other examples out there, and I'll be happy to compile the responses I get from this and other listserves to let you all know what the scoop is. As always, thanks a bunch. E-mail: cdickerson [A T] pprc [D O T] org ------------------- >From Jesse White, Resource Management Group, Sarasota, FL, responding to the 3/9/00 news item about rechargeable batteries: I recently switched to rechargeable batteries on my digital camera and have found, to my amazement, that it seems as if I am getting better battery life/performance from the rechargeables than from regular throw-away alkalines. I know, shame shame that I didn't buy a camera with a built-in rechargeable, or switch earlier, but it's really a complex issue. For instance: Is buying a more toxic but recyclable rechargeable better for the environment than continuing to buy less toxic but disposable batteries? What is the real cost-benefit? To be honest, I was sincerely worried that the rechargeables wouldn't work as well. I also found that the price was prohibitive. When I found a "deal" on a charger with the batteries included, I did quick math and figured it was a good time to try it out. Is knowledge power? Does anyone know of a website to calculate the cost-benefit of rechargeables vs. throw-aways? It might help other people make the switch. E-mail: jwhite [ AT ] recyclesmart [ DOT ] com ------------------- Excerpted from message from Mary MacDonald, Canadian Centre for Pollution Prevention, Sarnia, Ontario (forwarded by Bahar Keskin): The International Pollution Prevention Summit will be held October 18-20, 2000, at Montreal, Canada. The Summit will bring together leading practitioners and decision-makers from around the globe to take concrete steps to expand current understanding and implementation of pollution prevention. For information, see the Summit website at: http://c2p2.sarnia.com/summit/english/about/index.html We invite you to participate in the advance discussions that will help shape the action plans that will be completed at the Summit. The discussion site for the International Pollution Prevention Summit is now in operation. Introductory background material and opening questions have been posted for most of the categories. To participate in the advance discussions, you must register at the site. Information about how to do this can be found at: http://c2p2.sarnia.com/summit/english/program/action/participate.html The central themes for discussion (changing cultures, education, finance, policy and the role of government) focus on how pollution prevention is tied to real-life challenges of implementing sustainable development. If you know someone who would be interested in participating in these discussions, please forward this information to them. If you have any questions, please write to: c2p2 ( AT ) sarnia ( DOT ) com ------------------- Link to CleanerProduction.com, a website with a number of links related to pollution prevention and sustainable business (forwarded by Burt Hamner, who runs this site): http://www.cleanerproduction.com/ - end -