The Lower East Side Ecology Center is making responsible disposal of working and non-working electronics easier than ever before by collecting them at their NEW E-waste Warehouse in Gowanus (469 President Street at the corner of Nevins Street).

Any New York resident, small business (max. 50 employees) and non-profit organization can drop-off unwanted electronics for free.  If the equipment works, let folks at the Warehouse know & they’ll try to give it a second life.  They guarantee data security & offer affordable electronic equipment & parts, too.

DROP OFF HOURS:

• Tuesday: 10am – 5pm
• Wednesday: 12pm – 7pm
• Thursday: 10am – 5pm
• Friday: 10am – 5pm
• Saturday: 10am – 4pm
• CLOSED Sunday & Monday

For more info, check out their website by clicking here.

With thanks to the Lower East Side Recycling Center, Grow NYC and NYC.gov, we bring you a slew of tips for Greening Your Holidays…

Sending cards?

Try e-cards or look for greetings made with recycled content (we’ve got them at Green in BKLYN).  Include a note with your cards saying they can be donated for reuse by sending them to St. Jude’s Ranch for Children, where they’ll be re-purposed into greetings for 2012.

Purchasing gifts?

Show some style when shopping by bringing your own reusable bags (or pick up some with our Green in BKLYN logo on them at the shop) .  Choose minimally-packaged items made with recycled content and give items that will be treasured, not thrown out before the next holiday season.  Remember to “wrap it recyclable” by using old newspaper, recycled paper gift wrap (at the shop!) or a nice paper gift bag.  A convenient reusable bag is the gift wrap that keeps on giving.

Preparing a holiday meal?

Look for items in recyclable packaging and buy minimally- or non-packaged fresh produce, like that from the local farmer’s market.  Compost your vegetable trimmings or bring them to select Greenmarkets or other drop-off sites.  Prevent waste by making small changes such as using recyclable aluminum foil rather than plastic wrap for food storage or use Snack Taxis & glass storage containers (also at Green in BKLYN).  Serve your masterpiece on reusable plates and offer guests reusable flatware, glassware & napkins.

Stuck with clean up duties?

Remember to include gift boxes, wrapping paper and other paper packaging with your regular paper and cardboard recycling (remove tape, ribbons and other decorations).  Your eggnog cartons can be recycled too—place them in your recycling bin along with glass, metal and plastic items.  Reuse Styrofoam packing peanuts and compost the ones made from cornstarch.

Done with your  holiday tree?

If you’re putting up a real tree for the holidays, plan to chip in at MulchFest on January 7 & 8!  Trees (cleaned of stands, tinsel and ornaments) will be collected and recycled into mulch for NYC parks.  Bring your own bag to select sites and take home mulch for your yard, garden or street tree.  Find citywide drop-off sites and mulch pick-up locations here.  If you miss MulchFest, the city will pick up trees (also stripped of ornaments, etc) curbside from January 3-14.

Have unwanted electronics?

If you’re upgrading or unloading electronics, don’t send them to the landfill.  Find recycling resources here and check out the “After the Holidays” e-waste collection schedule from the Lower East Side Ecology Center.  There are events in all five boroughs through January 2012.

Changing clothes?

Clear out ill-fitting, outdated and otherwise unwanted clothing and other textiles (even the stuff you spilled cranberry sauce on at the holiday party) and bring them to one of GrowNYC’s weekly collections for reusable and recyclable textiles.

Swapping on your mind?

GrowNYC’s Stop ‘N’ Swap is the ultimate re-gifting party.  Bring reusable items to share (portable items only) or simply bring a tote bag or two to take home things you can put to reuse.  Winter swap dates and locations will be posted at GrowNYC.org/swap.

Feeling generous?

Others may want the stuff you no longer need. There are many local charitable organizations interested in receiving your gently used clothing, furniture, books and electronic goods.

In partnership with the Parks Department, the Fort Greene Park Conservancy is proud to host the fifth annual MulchFest.  Join their volunteer team & have your holiday tree chipped for future use in your Parks!

• What: MulchFest 2012
• Where: Washington Park & Willoughby
• When: Saturday, January 7th & Sunday, January 8th, 2012
• Time: 10am – 2pm

As part of the Myrtle Avenue Business Improvement District (BID), we received the following information from the BID & www.nyc.gov about preparing for Hurricane Irene.  This storm is gearing up to be a doozy.  Please take it seriously & be prepared…

What can you do to prepare for Hurricane Irene?

1. Make an Emergency Supply Kit

It is possible that you may lose power and there is a chance that the MTA may shut down some of its services over the weekend. Stock your household with emergency food and supplies.

The Office of Emergency Management recommends that all NYC residents have emergency supply kits including the following:

• One gallon of drinking water per person per day
• Nonperishable, ready-to-eat canned foods and a manual can opener
• First-aid kit
• Flashlight
• Battery-operated AM/FM radio and extra batteries
• Whistle
• Iodine tablets or one quart of unscented bleach (for disinfecting water ONLY if directed to do so (by health officials) and eyedropper (for adding bleach to water)
• Personal hygiene items: soap, feminine hygiene products, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc.
• Phone that does not rely on electricity
• Child care supplies or other special care items
• A small regional map

2. Read the Hurricane Preparedness Guide

The Office of Emergency Management also has available a Hurricane Preparedness Guide. Ready New York: Hurricanes and New York City includes general tips on how to prepare for any emergency, instructions on how to develop a hurricane disaster plan and secure your home before a storm, and a map of New York City hurricane evacuation zones.

3. Print out a checklist from the Red Cross

The American Red Cross suggests that you designate a meeting spot and set up alternative sleeping arrangements in case you and your family members are separated.  The Red Cross has printable checklists in a variety of languages on its website.

4. Visit Governor Cuomo’s website for Hurricane FAQs and some more tips and resources on storm preparation.  Check whether you live in an evacuation zone and determine your level of risk.  Let your family know you are okay on the Red Cross Safe and Well web page.

If you have any questions or concerns, call 311 or go to www.NYC.gov/OEM.

Change by Us NYC is the City’s new social media tool for greening New York’s neighborhoods. Change by Us NYC allows participants to post ideas, connect with other New Yorkers, find City & non-profit resources & start projects to make NYC greener & greater.

So if you have an idea for a greener, greater New York, log on & connect to the people & resources you need to make it happen.

Currently, Change by Us NYC is offering 20-40 mini-grants between $500 & $1,000 each to support selected projects on the site.  Eligible projects must be focused on neighborhood gardening & agriculture, tree or park stewardship, or composting.

It’s a great opportunity to come together to create new or improved gardens to produce local produce & decrease the carbon footprint of Brooklyn neighborhoods. The mini-grant application deadline is August 15th.  So review the application details & don’t wait to apply.

Since then, John and Jason, Borough Furnace founders, have been tromping all over the place trying to make stuff and make stuff happen:

The original plan was to design and prototype our cookware in our own studio using our recycled iron method and work with other craftsmen to produce the bulk of the products. We were disheartened to find out, after calling almost every foundry in the US, that no one was interested in either our product or our process. Repeatedly, we were told that iron work of that scale is only done in China and India… Well, that is unacceptable to us.

So, these crafty fellows have decided to do it themselves… They’re starting a remodel in Syracuse to build a micro-foundry and pro-toyping studio so they can get down to business. Which means, we should finally be able to get some awesome Borough Skillets here at Green in BKLYN!

Now, if you want to move the process along, the fellas have launched a Kickstarter.com campaign to try and get funding for their new foundry. That will allow them to start producing their cast iron cookware within the year, which would be awesome! For them,for us (you, me) and Green in BKLYN!

They’re so hot, they’re cool!

So, without further ado. Or hot air. Green in BKLYN presents…

TEN WAYS TO STAY COOL (while being kind to Mother Earth):

1. Plant some green: Houseplants absorb warm carbon dioxide and replace it with cool oxygen. Plus they’re nice to talk to.
2. Open up: Even if the wind is only blowing 1 mile per hour, cracking the window at night can cool your home 3 to 4 degrees.
3. Lighten up: Fluorescent  bulbs (CFLs and LEDs) use up to 75% less energy and put out much less heat than incandescent bulbs.
4. Join the fan club: Installing a ceiling fan costs only a fraction of what it takes to install and run an AC. Plus, using fans instead of an AC can lower home cooling costs by as much as 30%.
5. Wet yourself: Place a cool, damp cloth around your neck or wrists or hold a cloth-wrapped ice cube against your pulse points. You’ll experience an immediate cool-down effect of as much as three degrees.
6. Give it a rest: Don’t use your dishwasher, clothes washer, dryer or oven during the heat of the day. Use a clothesline to skip the dryer altogether and the microwave to bypass the oven.
7. Sleep it off: Try breathable bamboo sheets that wick away moisture and are cool to the touch and wet your sheets (with water) for a cool rest.
8. Take it off: Show some skin when you get home. Peel off the layers. Go au natural, if you dare. Less (clothes) is more (chance for the air to cool you off).
9. Get wet: Drink, shower and spray H2O all in and over your self. Cool water in your belly, on your body and coming out of a spray bottle will hydrate and cool you. Icy loveliness!
10. Slow it down: No need to rush. Give yourself a little more time to get where you’re going, do what you’re doing and be who you’re being. Slower moving means less energy expenditure. Less stress. Less heat!

Seasons and the inevitable changing of them are an awesome natural occurrence. Adjusting accordingly makes our interaction with those changes an awesome natural occurrence as well. Here’s to change!

Similar to smoking or sun exposure, many of these risks occur over time. Given the dramatic increase in radiation exposure over the past decade – due to the increased use of cell phones, laptops, MP3 players, computers, wireless networks, power lines, cell phone towers and more – we’re starting to see the impacts.

Belly Armor, by RadiaShield, has found a simple, easy way to protect pregnant women as well as female and male reproductive areas.  Their blankets are made with lightweight and breathable RadiaShield fabric. This fabric is lined with a very thin textile made of 82% silver and its silver ions neutralize incoming radiation, which protect against 99.9% of harmful radiation.

If you try the Cell Phone Test – note your level of cell phone signal, then wrap your  phone in the Belly Armor blanket – after 30 seconds, the phone’s signal will go down significantly or totally disappear. And, even though Belly Armor is lined with a silver fabric, it’s completely machine washable.

This is why we love Belly Armor at Green in BKLYN. And why we now carry their awesome blankets in the shop.

This is the month to clear out all your working & non-working computers, monitors, printers, scanners, keyboards, mice, cables, TVs, VCRs, DVD players, phones, AV equipment, cell phones & PDAs.  LESEC will take them.  Where?  When?  Check the schedule below:

• Saturday, April 2 (10am-4pm) @ Staten Island Mall, Parking Lot F (near main entrance) – 2655 Richmond Avenue, Staten Island
• Sunday, April 3 (10am-4pm) @ Union Square Park, North Plaza – Broadway at East 17th Street, New York
• Saturday, April 9 (10am-4pm) @ Queens Library at Broadway – 4020 Broadway (btw. Steinway Street a 41st Street), Queens
• Saturday, April 9 (10am-4pm) @ Poly Prep Country Day School – 9216 Seventh Avenue (btw. 92nd Street & Poly Place), Brooklyn
• Sunday, April 10 (10am-4pm) @ Sephardic Community Center – 1901 Ocean Parkway (at Avenue S), Brooklyn
• Sunday, April 10 (10am-4pm) @ Morningside Park, Morningside Avenue (btw. 113th Street & 114th Street), New York
• Saturday, April 16 (10am-4pm) @ Tekserve, 119 West 23rd Street (b/w 6th Avenue & 7th Avenue), New York
• Sunday, April 17 (10am-4pm) @ Van Cortlandt Park, Broadway (btw. Manhattan College Parkway & Post Road), Bronx
• Saturday, April 30 (10am-4pm) @ PS 29 Schoolyard, Baltic St (btw. Henry St. & Clinton Street), Brooklyn, NY
• Saturday, April 30 (10-4pm) @ Sunnyside Community Services, 39th Street (btw. Queens Blvd & 43rd Avenue), Queens

And if you have questions, call 212-477-4022 or email lesecologycenter.org.

Tiffany’s groovy book is jam-packed with 95 do-it-yourself “Recycling Projects from the Stuff You Usually Scrap”.  So you can transform outdated CDs into a lampshade, empty cereal boxes into a magazine holder, bottle caps into a game of checkers & a whole lot more!

Join us joining Tiffany & make something awesome with something scrappy.  Bonus crafty project included!