Can you help Forky and Bob celebrate America Recycles Day?

Did you know that Forky, the engaging talking spork (spoon/fork) was created from trash? Watch the clip from the Toy Story film to find out how Forky went from trash to a treasure!

America Recycles Day was celebrated on November 15 and Keep America Beautiful challenges you to #DoBeautifulThings every day. In this post, like Forky, we will help you turn trash into treasure!

​When you throw something away, where does it go? According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Americans generate approximately 4.51 pounds of trash per person per day. For example, in 2017, Americans generated a total of 267 million tons per day! While much of that waste went to landfills, 94 million tons (35%) were recycled and composted and more than 34 million tons (12.7%) were combusted and turned into energy. That leaves more than 139 million tons (52%) of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) to be landfilled. 

We are calling all Sustainability Superheroes to make a difference!

Turning Trash into Treasure:
Step 1: Look in your recycling bin! You are sure to find some trash that you can reimagine into a character! You can also intercept trash before it goes into the garbage can:)

2) Turn your trash into a character and conduct some research on recycling. You can use some of the resources from our last workshop.

3) Write a script for a short Public Service Announcement (PSA) about recycling. Use some of the documents on this site to find facts and then create a public service announcement. Ideally, the PSA should be less than one minute. Here are sample PSAs:
 

• Save a Tree With Three! (15 seconds) Did you know that recycling a single three-foot stack of newspapers saves a tree? Now, imagine the forests we could save together. Learn more green tips at (website, social media, etc.). This is a public service announcement from (Name). 
• Get Your Green On (:30-1:00) Have you done something green yet today? If not, it’s time to get your green on. Recycle your trash. (Add more ideas here).  Learn more at _____. This is a public service message from ___________. 

3) Check out the very PSA from our new friend Bob. 

This was made with the free Chatterpix app for Android or Apple. After you create your Trash to Treasure characters, record your PSA to share with your friends and family!

For more Toy Story Trash to Treasure link for more educational fun!