Celebrate Earth Day and Earn some Green {sponsored}

This post is part of my partnership with the US Cellular Blogger Brigade Ambassador Program.

 

A year ago Easter we found this house, and on July 4 we will be celebrating one full year of calling it home, and we are still emptying boxes and unpacking.

 

Earth Day

 

I’ve been working on purging items from our home in an effort live more simply and also because who needs 100 votives – unless you are a wedding planner. The purging is great for our home, but I don’t want to just transfer the clutter straight to the landfill especially if someone else might find it useful. You know what they say “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

 

So we made a point to sell the items we could at our local consignment shops or donate them to Goodwill, which works fine for old Hawkeye t-shirts, the plethora of romance novels lining my shelves, and the baby toys that Little Red no longer finds interesting.

 

But what about all our outdated electronics?

 

Statistics on the numbers of electronics that are not being recycled are sobering; of the 141 million mobile phones that were discarded in 2009 (the most recent data available), only 12 million were recycled, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Thirty percent of people who do not recycle their used cell phones refrain from doing so because they don’t know where to recycle their devices, according to an online poll conducted by Earth911.

 

That would be us.

 

When I finally unpacked my office I found FIVE ancient phones, some still used buttons…GASP. Turns out when I upgraded phones with my hoarded points I never disposed of my old phones. Luckily as part of my partnership with US Cellular I was introduced to their Trade-In Program.

 

Basically, you recycle old electronic devices like phones or tablets and receive up to $250 to use for whatever you want, wherever you want – like getting a better, new phone. And by participating, you’ll be doing something good for the environment – every phone that isn’t refurbished will be recycled.

 

Find out how much your used phone or tablet is worth by clicking on “Phones” or “Tablets” above to get started. If you prefer, you can also visit any U.S. Cellular® store to appraise your device. U.S. Cellular® Customers and non-customers are eligible.

 

I’m loving this idea.

 

I get to declutter my home, earn some money and save the planet.

 

Now that’s a win, win especially since today is Earth Day.

 

In honor of Earth Day I thought I’d share some other ways to reduce, reuse and recycle from my friends at US Cellular.

 Earth-Day-Apps

Have fun (and get rewarded) by going greener with Recyclebank.com The app provides actionable tips and advice to become more environmentally conscious. Plus, users get rewarded with points (redeemable for grocery discounts, gift cards, etc.) by being green (recycling, using less water, etc.).

 

Recycle more easily with the 1800Recycling app. It identifies nearby recycling locations based on ZIP code, and provides directions to the recycling centers and lists which materials they’ll take.

 

Share your treasures with the Freecycle app. It allows people to give away their unwanted but reusable stuff to people in their local community who can use the items. Post items to give away or make requests for items on this convenient app. This is one of my favorites, not only to purge items, but to find some hidden treasures too.

 

I’m hopeful that if each one of us can make these little changes Mother Earth will be around for generations to come.

 

What are some of your “green” tips?

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US Cellular Better Moments Blogger Brigade

Disclosure: Through the rest of the year I’ll be sharing some more of My BETTER MOMENTS as a US Cellular Better Moments Blogger Brigade Ambassador. All opinions are my own and an honest view of my story as a US Cellular customer.

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