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Smallest room

Only one in five Americans consistently recycles bathroom items, according to a report commissioned by the Johnson & Johnson Family of Consumer Cos., which has launched a campaign to educate people about recyclable bathroom items. The Care to Recycle campaign is intended to increase awareness and serve as a reminder to recycle containers from the bathroom, says Paulette Frank, vice president of sustainability for the Johnson & Johnson Family of Consumer Co., headquartered in New Brunswick, N.J.

The Care to Recycle initiative is hosted on Tumblr at www.caretorecycle.com and includes an informative short video, “Smallest Room.” Each time the video is shared online from Nov. 21, 2013, to April 20, 2014, Johnson & Johnson will donate $1 to Keep America Beautiful, Stamford, Conn., which will help to provide recycling bins for schools across the U.S., giving teachers the tools they need to educate students about recycling.

Frank says the company hopes the campaign leads to “a change in the behavior of throwing recyclable bathroom items in the trash and a greater awareness that we can all contribute to a healthy planet.”

From TV to tile

Tile manufacturer Fireclay Tile, San Jose, Calif., has created a first-of-its-kind glass tile made of the screens from CRT (cathode ray tube) devices, according to the company’s Kickstarter page. Fireclay Tile says it surpassed its goal to raise $10,000 to purchase molds that help it recycle old CRT screens into glossy new tiles with $16,080 raised through the crowd funding platform.

Owner Paul Burns created the Debris Series Recycled Tile to focus on sustainability and recycled materials, he says on Fireclay’s Kickstarter page. CRTs comprise nearly half of all electronics ready for end-of-life management, says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The CRT tile, its light gray color named phosphor, is made of glass provided from the Santa Clara, Calif.-based electronics recycling and IT asset management firm ECS Refining. Fireclay then begins a multistep crushing process that produces glass particles small enough to melt when exposed to heat.

For more, visit www.fireclaytile.com/blog/full/kickstarter-project-made-with-crt.

Next big thing

Three Squared Inc., the Detroit-based, forward-thinking real estate development company that was highlighted in the May/June 2013 issue of Recycling Today’s sister publication, Construction & Demolition Recycling (www.cdrecycler.com/cdr0513-building-trends-shipping-containers.aspx), has appointed industry veteran Eric Lloyd Wright & Associates to lead its multiple projects, the company says.

Three Squared builds, among other projects, residential and commercial buildings from cargo containers. The company is working on a Rosa Parks condo complex, the developer’s flagship project in Detroit representing the first multifamily dwelling constructed in the U.S. from retired shipping containers.

Eric Lloyd Wright, grandson of renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright, says, “I am thrilled to join Three Squared and work in a brand new arena that will truly revolutionize the building industry. Given the significant impact this construction approach will have on future generations, our architectural and oversight work with the company will be a distinguished part of my legacy—one that I am especially proud and excited about.”

He adds, “This proprietary method of construction is the ‘next big thing’ in the U.S. building industry and it will have an enduring impact.”

For more information, visit www.threesquaredinc.com.

Do you have a unique recycling-focused story? Please send a press release to Megan Workman at mworkman@gie.net.