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Upcoming Meeting: Second Tuesdays of most months at 5:30pm via Zoom. Call in at 5pm for sharing. All are invited to attend. RSVP
The NCRA Zero Waste Advocacy Committee has been hosting a monthly “ZWAC Show”, featuring a recycling or sustainability topic of contemporary interest and a brief reading about a Recycling Pioneer from the Recycling Archives. Check here for the schedule.
September 13 – What Happened in the Room?
During the 2021 Legislative session, ZWAC had hosted three monthly discussions about the Bottle Bill, however the leading Bills faltered, and a last ditch effort to rescue CRV bottle deposit redemption centers failed.
Jeff Donlevy of the Statewide Commission on Recycling Markets and Curbside Recycling and Business Development Manager at Recycling Industries, Inc, had been “in the room” throughout, and discussed the who, what and why, and what portends for next year.
Recycling Archives: Gerry Gillespie, a founding member of Zero Waste International Alliance, discussed how he played a key role in the first governmental adoption of a Zero Waste program in Australia.
August 10 – Advocacy for the Disenfranchised
Attorney Cynthia Chandler, featured in the documentary Belly of the Beast recounted her fight against State of California law and policy that began with Nazi-era eugenics that lead to our state prisons sterilizing women, mostly women of color, without their consent.
Nancy Gorrell, long time Berkeley activist, spoke about how she helped catalyze the reconfiguring of a holiday celebrating Christopher Columbus to one celebrating indigenous peoples.
Recycling Archives: Nancy went on to also discuss Berkeley’s landmark Styrofoam ban, and her zero waste artwork
July 13 – Combating Plastics Pollution & Resource Recovery Businesses
Sumona Majumdar, general legal counsel to Earth Island Institute, discussed their newest lawsuit against plastic product makers like Coca-Cola, and how it differs from other anti-plastic campaigns which target misleading advertising about recyclability in plastic.
Panel Discussion Resource Recovery Businesses:
Neil Seldman of the Washington DC based Institute for Local Self-Reliance discussed his many years of research into the benefits of local resource recovery.
Three founder/owners of Bay Area resource recovery businesses each discussed their experiences, why and how they started their businesses, their market niches, how they impact zero waste and create jobs at the same time:
Stephanie Regni, Fillgood in Berkeley. https://www.fillgood.co/
Nikki Kozlowski, Wisdom Supply. https://www.wisdomsupplyco.com/
Will Bakx, Sonoma Compost. http://www.sonomacompost.com/
June 8, 2021
Three Ways that Zero Waste Can Save the Planet
Attorney Lori Mendez of the Save the Albatross Coalition discussed ongoing battles against plastic pollution.
Brenda Platt of the Institute for Local Self Reliance and directs ILSR’s Communities for Compost project, discussed advances in composting, soil policy, and carbon sequestration.
Monica Wilson, Policy and Research Coordinator of the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, spoke about the continuing global problem of garbage incineration.
Recycling Archives: Brenda Platt
May 11, 2021
Action Items for a Revamped Bottle Bill
At the 4/13 meeting, there had been a strong consensus that ZWAC and NCRA should try to promote legislation to help CRV Bottle deposit redemption centers. However there was no bill in the current legislative session to achieve this. Discussed were essential features and strategies for a revised Bottle Bill, which would need a huge social media and community outreach component to succeed.
Recycling Archives: Delyn Kies, inspirational story of how she spearheaded environmental legislation in Oregon in the 1990s.
April 13, 2021
Should the Bottle Bill be Fixed or Scrapped and Why
Susan Collins, President of the Container Recycling Institute, and Richard Valle, Alameda County Supervisor and President of Tri-CED, each provided answers, insights and perspectives on pertinent Bill proposals.
Adolfo Ramirez, owner of BC Recycling Inc, with several buyback facilities serving the most disadvantaged populations in Visalia, described the shortcomings of the current and proposed Bottle Bill legislation.
Dr. Dan Knapp, President of Urban Ore Inc, discussed the sociology of recycling and why personal contact with redemption centers is such an important part of zero waste that cannot be served only by machines.
Recycling Archives: Susan Kinsella, Director of the Recycling Archives, read passages from the early transformative years the youthful Dr. Knapp.
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