From local to direct trade to sustainable, I have often scratched my head before I reach for my wallet. Apparently this confusion is as much a big city phenomenon as it is a Southern California push.

Paper is in the fabric of our society and the world community. Although some say paper has depreciated with the invention of the PC and electronic data transfer, paper production is still at an all-time high.

Recycling paper is essential to the well being of planet earth. It’s the little choices that in the end add up to make a huge difference. When each individual takes personal responsibility to do his or her part, greenhouse gases are reduced, energy is saved and fewer trees are used to produce paper.

Paper is an essential element to our daily lives that is overlooked and taken for granted. Take a moment and think about the world without paper — no brown bags for your morning egg and cheese breakfast sandwich, no napkins and no receipt for your purchase. The world without paper would be a very different place.

The industrial feel of Tampa is reflected in the food, which makes finding a green restaurant seem difficult and at times impossible.

Although recycling is now an ingrained part of life for most New Yorkers, this great city has not always been so green.

Since 2003, Business Management and Waste Consultant Jim Verros has worked closely with Cedar Avenue Recycling and Transfer Station (CARTS). Subsequently, he has watched the recycling trends of the residents of Fresno, CA. Over the past six years, he has noticed a heightened awareness from consumers. In general, he says that the stigma of the “kind of people” who recycle has vanished, replaced by vigor for saving the environment.

New Yorkers pride themselves on their city’s recycling program. NYC’s recycling program is widely considered to be one of the most comprehensive in the U.S.

Aluminum is such a nifty material. It’s flexible yet sturdy, can be recycled an infinite amount of times and it is no surprise that many crafty types have figured out countless ways to make some really cool DIY projects with it.

In the last 20 years, we’ve gone from home-phone voicemail, to car phones, to expensive cell phones, to laptops, to cheap cell phones that are basically laptops… and the technological advancement list rolls on and on.

What does that have to do with electronic vs. electric waste? Everything — because these same movies give life to inanimate objects, blurring the line between say, a toaster and a computer. Which one is electronic (and therefore needs special care when disposing) and which can be tossed in the trash?

From computers that crash to cell phones that crumble to a new model, to iPods that don’t shuffle like they used to, recycling is key, and even mandatory. It is illegal to dump electronic waste, or “e-waste” into the regular garbage pickup system in many cases.