Disclosure Statement Kate O'Neill has not disclosed any affiliations other than her academic position. She does not consult for, own shares or receive funding from, or work for any companies or organizations that could benefit from the article. Partners Curious Kids is an educational series for kids of all ages. If you have a question you'd like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com. Will we eventually have to send our trash into space if we run out of room on Earth? Aiden, age 13, Maryland Heights, Mo. Our planet holds a lot of trash. Since the Industrial Revolution ,...

    Disclosure Statement Cressida Bowyer receives funding from UK Research and Innovation and Flotilla Foundation Keiron Roberts is funded by UNEP, Innovate UK, and Research England Stephanie Northen received funding from the Flotilla Foundation. Partners The University of Portsmouth is a member of The Conversation UK and provides funding. View All Partners  We believe in free information flow You can republish our articles online or in print for free under Creative Commons license. Republishing this article Email Twitter30 Facebook112 Print Recycling plastics was once thought to be the solution for the excess of virgin (or new) plastics produced every year....

  Disclosure Statement Matthew Derry has not disclosed any affiliations other than his academic position. He does not consult for, own shares or receive funding from, or work for any companies or organizations that could benefit from the article. Partners Aston University is a member and provides funding to The Conversation UK. View All Partners  We believe in free information flow You can republish our articles online or in print for free under Creative Commons license. Republishing this article img alt="Woman looking confused holding recycling bag." data-id="529405"  Recycling can be a hassle. Krakenimages.com/Shutterstock Email Twitter7 Facebook58 Print Are you a Wishcycler when it comes...

  Disclosure statement Ian Williams receives funding from EU Horizon 2020 and EPSRC. Ian Williams is a member of the International Solid Waste Association, the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. Partners The University of Southampton provides funding as a member of The Conversation UK. View all partners We believe in the free flow of information Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. Republish this article Email Twitter5 Facebook31 LinkedIn Print Where does our rubbish go? - Tsubame, aged nine, London, UK Modern life causes lots of different types...

  Disclosure statement Torik Holmes receives funding from the UKRI-ISCF Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Fund (NE/V01045X/1). He works for The University of Manchester within the Sustainable Consumption Institute. Adeyemi Adelekan, Maria Sharmina and Michael Shaver are also part of the 'One Bin to Rule Them All' research project team. Helen Holmes receives funding from the UKRI-ISCF Smart Sustainable Packaging Fund (NE/V01045X/1). Kristoffer Kortsen receives funding from the UKRI-ISCF Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Fund (NE/V01045X/1). Partners The University of Manchester provides funding as a member of The Conversation UK. View all partners We believe in the free flow of information Republish our...

  Disclosure Statement Michaela Barnett, the owner and founder of KnoxFill, is a company that sells refillable and bulk household and personal care products. Shahzeen Attari has received funding from the National Science Foundation. Leidy Klutz and Patrick I. Hancock have not disclosed any relevant affiliations other than their academic appointment. They do not consult or own shares of companies or organizations that could benefit from the article. Partners The Conversation U.S. members Indiana University and the University of Virginia provide funding. View All Partners  We believe in free information flow You can republish our articles online or in print for free under Creative...

  In the United States, recycling rates have increased from less than 7% in 1960 to more than 34% in 2015. We have a lot of work to do, despite the promising progress. This guide will help you get started with recycling at home, work and school. The Importance of Recycling Why recycle? It is a simple concept. It's beneficial to the environment when you turn something old into something else. Resources and materials are not wasted. During the manufacturing process, energy is conserved. Less waste is sent to landfills. It also helps to keep wildlife safe. Recycling can also...

In today's society, recycling is essential if you want to preserve this planet for future generations. Recycling is beneficial to the environment, as we can create new products out of old ones that are no longer useful. Recycling starts at home. Recycling is when you reuse your old items for new products. Reduce, reuse, and recycle should be the main focus when you consider recycling. It's time for us to stop being so careless with our Earth. Volume 0% of 1 second in 30 seconds Businesses are changing packaging and recycling because consumers want it.  Good Natured Stackable Recycling Bin...

  The recycling system in the United States is broken. By 2017, Americans produced an average of 4,51 pounds per day. While many Americans put their recyclables in the bins, a lot of them are not recycled. This article will discuss the reasons why and possible solutions. Why recycling doesn't work in the U.S. When items are put in the wrong bin or a dirty container of food is placed into the recycling bin, many recyclables can become contaminated. Contamination may prevent the recycling of large quantities of material. Certain facilities can't process certain materials. Many items collected, such as yogurt containers,...

The modern industry has made huge strides to turn trash into new products of tomorrow, but it is still far from perfect. New technologies can help. Updates on chemical recycling, design, and dirty recycling. Design for recycling They take your stuff to be re-cycled, right? They don't just dump all the carefully separated newspaper, cardboard boxes, and metal cans with the rest. Relax. Rest assured that your recyclables will (probably) end up where they are supposed to. The same trucks are going to different destinations -- usually a sorting facility, similar to the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) that Michael Taylor...