At any given times, we have multiple projects going on. If one projects fails, another will sustain our morale. In the past four years there have been moments of both triumphs and struggles. But nothing will bog us down. We are mission-oriented and the ideas of Zero Waste, sustainable future and fair and just society keep us going no matter what obstacles are presented in our way! Hey, who would have thought it’s so hard to get Zero Waste programs going in the progressive Ithaca .. 😝

at our iconic Ithaca Falls!
Here are some of our current projects:
- Ithaca / Finger Lakes Reduces – BYO (Bring Your Own) Sticker program inspired by Canada Reduces
- Real Glass Recycling Initiative
- The Jungle, Trash and Equity
- Trash Pickups – our own and co-hosting with Friends of Stewart Park and Ithaca Rotary Club – always giving mad hat-tips off to Ithaca’s original Glorious Trash Birds!
- Reuse and exchange through Buy Nothing: Gifting with Integrity gift economy groups
- Other projects on our radar:
- Encouraging individual food establishments to create its own in-house returnable deposit container programs
- Area-wide reuse & refill eco-system of wash and delivery of dishes for reuse for deposit, for small food businesses with no machine dishwashers on site
- Area-wide composting eco-system – Food scraps and organic matters don’t belong to landfills! We see composting primarily as a simple method for climate mitigation and waste reduction that everybody should participate as a matter of civic duty
- Area-wide system for wine bottle reuse for the area wineries and cideries
- And of course – making Ithaca and Tompkins a Zero Waste City / Municipality!
We also do social events such as Zero Waste potlucks, sewing get-together, hiking and film gatherings, etc. Please check our facebook event page to see what’s up! And please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you want to get involved. We always need volunteers for our projects.