VanCity Investing in Communities – Stories of Impact
Fall 2012
Source: https://www.vancity.com/AboutUs/InvestingInCommunities/Stories/Energy/Recycling/
Some businesses seek to fill the world with their products. But for Recycling Alternative it’s all about getting to zero—zero waste, that is.
More than 20 years ago, Robert Weatherbe offered his friend Louise Schwarz some help to advance her passion for recycling. Today, he and Louise co-own of one of Canada’s most creative recycling companies, Recycling Alternative. Continue reading…
UBC Journalism News Service – The Thunderbird
By Reyhana Heatherington
October 17, 2012
Source: http://thethunderbird.ca/2012/10/17/food-scraps-recycling-fails-in-eco-friendly-olympic-village/
Louise Schwarz talks trash or more precisely she talks about the virtues of reducing trash, but it seems condo residents in the eco-friendly Olympic village do not.
On July 10, the city funded a pilot project to eliminate food scrap waste in the Olympic village. It set up an easily accessible composting location but all residents had to do was use it. But three months later, the project closed because not enough people were taking advantage of it.
Schwarz, co-founder of Recycling Alternative, said she expected residents to use the centralized drop bins more, especially considering that the city claims it is one of the greenest neighbourhoods in North America.
“I was surprised. I mean, the Olympic village is perfect; it’s just waiting to happen…but we didn’t quite get the numbers.” Continue reading…
Cheryn Wong from the Olympic Village Drop Spot was interviewed on the Early Edition about composting options for multi-family buildings. Lots of great info, listen to it here at about minute 20:17
Source: http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/ID/2257263590/
Or download the podcast at: http://www.cbc.ca/earlyedition/podcast/2012/07/17/disabled-parking-landslide-research-condo-composting/
July 15, 2012
NEW ORGANIC RECYCLING OPTIONS FOR VANCOUVER APARTMENT AND CONDO RESIDENTS!
Two groups of residents in the West End and Olympic Village are joining other high-density Vancouver neighbourhoods in a community effort to divert organics from the landfill by creating new Food Scraps Drop Spots.
On June 16, 2012 the West End Neighbourhood Food Network and Village Vancouver launched their 10am-1pm Saturday Drop Spot at the West End Community Centre. Continue reading…
BC Hydro News
June 29, 2012
Source: http://www.bchydro.com/news/conservation/2012/ywca-award-winner.html
“Every so often in life, something hits you in the head like a ton of bricks,” says Louise Schwarz, founding partner of Vancouver-based Recycling Alternative, explaining the epiphany that led her to develop some of Vancouver’s most innovative green community solutions.
In 1989, Louise was visiting a friend in Seattle and was amazed by their advances in recycling. It might seem strange Continue reading…
Business in Vancouver
Glen Korstrom Fri Jun 8, 2012 9:00am PST
Source: http://www.biv.com/article/20120608/BIV0114/120609964/new-program-allows-west-end-apartment-dwellers-to-compost-food-scraps?utm_source=BIV+Daily&utm_campaign=9a07cbbedb-Daily_Friday_June_86_8_2012&utm_medium=email
The City of Vancouver offers curbside food scraps collection for single family dwellings but is having a “headache” dealing with multi-unit dwellings, which dominate the downtown peninsula, West End Neighbourhood Food Network (WEFN) spokesman Randy Helten told Business in Vancouver June 7.
Now a new program is opening in the West End to help apartment and condo dwellers to compost their food scraps. Continue reading…
Back in February, 3 dear friends surprised me, when they came into my office to declare they had nominated me for the ‘ YWCA Women of Distinction Awards’. Their insistence on making the journey into my office to see me that day, caused me to suspect they might be coming in to announce that one of them was pregnant (probably not the man in the group!) – so not only was I gob-smacked to hear about the award nomination Continue reading…
Listen to Recycling Alternative’s Louise Schwarz talk about the Food Scraps Drop Spot on CBC’s BC Almanac!
BC Almanac Aug 31st 2011
(Check min 40:00)
