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Tag Archives: Recycle
Disney DIY – Recycling Disney T-Shirts
We love Disney T-shirts, its one of the most popular items purchased in the parks. However, what to do when it’s unwearable? Maybe worn out from too many trips, stained from the Mickey Ear Ice Cream bar, or no longer fits (nothing to do with the Mickey Ear Ice Cream Bar). You can always recycle (or the new word is upcycle) your favorites. Here are a few ideas of my own and some fun tips I found while searching the internet.
Make a Quilt
Or if you are like me, have someone make a quilt for you. There are many services out there that will take your old t-shirts, cut out the image and sew into a quilt of memories. What better way to have your trip memories available as a cozy blanket to wrap around you as you watch your favorite Disney classic on TV. If you are handy of course you can do this on your own and make it a family project!
Write a Book
Many of the photo printing sites out there offer soft and hard cover books of your photos. Some even use Disney backgrounds and graphics. Often there are great deal for free books or half price book. Take a close up photo of the image on your t-shirt. Either on you or stretched out on the back of a chair. Make a collage book of your favorite t-shirts and maybe include text with fun anctedotes of that particular trip. For example: “ This is the 2010 trip shirt we bought Andrew after he got soaked on Splash Mountain”. You can even put in a few pics of your family wearing the shirt on a trip. Then if the shirt is in good shape, give to a charity of your choice. There are many kids that will never make it to Disney and the shirt alone will be priceless.
Reduce-Reuse-Recycle: How Disney Cruise Line is going green
You are familiar with the 3 R’s of recycling, and you’ve already heard how Walt Disney World is going green, but what you’re probably less familiar with is how Disney Cruise Line puts these into operation on a daily basis.
Reduce:
1. Instead of wasting more than 20,000 plastic bags, Disney Cruise Line has placed cloth laundry bags in each stateroom to minimize the waste of plastic onboard.
2. Each vessel has an environmental officer onboard, it’s his job to monitor all of the recycling and ship’s environmental processes.. They are specifically trained in “maritime environmental regulations and systems” and they pass on that knowledge to all other crew members and officers.
3. To reduce the resistance in the water a special coating is placed on the ships. The coating is 100% non-toxic and increases the fuel efficiency by reducing the resistance of the water.
Reuse:
1. All Disney Cruise Line ships have AWPS (Advanced Wastewater Purification Systems). This process takes onboard wastewater and purifies it until it’s beyond the level required to meet international shipping standards.
2. The condensation from the air conditioners is also put to good use. The water is purified, recycled and used in onboard laundry facilities and to wash the ships decks.
3. The heat from power generators onboard provides the energy to transform tons of sea water into useable water on the ships each day.
Recycle:
1. Those shiny banisters you see around the ship are another example of recycling. The stair case banisters, as well as virtually everything else is cleaned with biodegradable or organic cleaning products.
2. Vehicles and machinery on Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island) are powered by a special “bio-fuel” that’s made onboard. The used cooking oil from the galley (kitchen) is transformed into a useable fuel that powers the machines on the island!
3. Disney’s ships aren’t just pretty, they’re smart too! The flooring and carpet is made of sustainable, organic and recyclable materials. The new ships are designed to function more “hydrodynamically”, so they are more efficient in the water and use less energy.
Being environmentally friendly isn’t only the responsibility of the cruise line, it’s also the responsibility of the cruise-ER, YOU! You can’t manufacture flooring from recycled materials or change cooking oil into fuel..but there are plenty of things you CAN do to help!
Help:
1. Reduce the energy wasted in your stateroom. When you are aboard the Disney Magic or the Disney Wonder, turn off your television and stateroom lights when you aren’t using them. On the Dream and the Fantasy the stateroom is built “smart”, requiring your key to be a slot in order for your electricity to work. That means when you leave and take your room key with you, the stateroom powers down.
2. Reuse your bath towels. 500,000 gallons of salt water is converted to fresh water for use onboard everyday. While this process is very effective, you can help avoid an increase by reusing your towels and turning the water off while you brush your teeth.
3. Recycle your bottles and cans! Each trash receptacle onboard is divided for cans, bottles and waste. Help the crew by disposing of your items properly, then they can spend less time sorting trash and more time making your cruise magical!
Fun facts-Disney Cruise Line has:
-Eliminated more than 4,600 tons of metals, glass, plastic and paper through recycling
-Removed 31,000 lbs or trash and debris from beaches and waterways -Conserved tons of fresh water each day by recycling condensation
-Inspired 3,100 children in the Cayman Islands with programs such as Disney Planet Challenge .
If you’re inspired to find out more about Disney’s environmental and conservation you’re off to a great start!
How do you “go green” onboard? Share your tips and tricks below!
Related articles
- Top Ten Disney Cruise Line Dining Tips (disneyfoodblog.com)
- Disney Cruise Line Begins First Summer Cruise Season in Alaska (chipandco.com)
Celebrate Earth Day: Recycling while in Walt Disney World
I frequently vacation in Walt Disney World. With so many visits to Disney World, I begin noticing things that I would not have typically noticed otherwise. For instance, upon check in at any of the Walt Disney Resorts I began noticing the HUGE packets of various brochures detailing the park hours, park maps, resort map, resort activities and on and on given to me. Knowing that I have a phone application detailing the park hours and no need for the other information given upon check-in, now I ask that the cast member keep the information packet for the next guest as I really will not be browsing all of the documents. I always feel a bit ungrateful when I ask that they just keep their packet they were presenting me, but, at home, I make attempts to recycle and do not want to be wasteful while on vacation.
With this in mind, I began to do some research while on vacation in Disney to find out exactly what they do to recycle there at Walt Disney World. Here is what I found:
1. Disney requests that all guests use their towels again. I bet you have noticed the cards in your bathroom at your Disney World resort requesting that you agree to reusing your towel by simply rehanging the towel on the towel rack. This simple act reduces the amount of water, detergent, and man hours used to provide clean towels to guests on a daily basis.
2. In your resort room, you will notice that Disney has included a “green” trash can. I noticed on this trip that the cans no longer have the arrow recycle symbol on them, and are now just green. These cans are for items that are recyclable. I frequently add glass bottles, paper, plastics and the like to these cans and attempt to use them as often as I do the regular trash can, when appropriate.
3. Look for Jimminy Cricket! Disney uses him as a symbol on guest doors in their Walt Disney World resorts to gently remind guests as they exit their resort room to turn off their lights and other electrical items to reduce the amount of electricity used.
4. Included all over the parks and resorts are recycle bins for bottles, etc. Look for them and be sure to use them to help in the recycling efforts!
After returning home, I further researched to find that Disney recycles 18,000 tons of materials each year. They have also set up a program entitled Disney Harvest whereby they donate approximately 50,000 POUNDS of prepared yet unserved edible food each MONTH! The company also recycles approximately 5 million plastic guest key cards per year. (I have never seen where they would take those in for recycling. Have you? Perhaps they are simply recycling the keys that are left in the room by the guests?) And finally, they have changed their lights to compact fluorescent bulbs as well as switching to low flow shower heads and toilets.
Should you want to learn more about recycling while in the parks at Walt Disney World, consider a visit to the Waste Management Don’t Waste It! exhibit located in EPCOT’s Innoventions East. Here you will find a game worth of a bit of recycled fun and learning for all ages. I hope you will consider recycling whether on vacation or at home.
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