Another really great bottle idea!

Hey Y'all!

I have been sent this link by at least three people, and therefore I think that is a sign I need to post it in this blog! This link is about using plastic bottles to create more light in homes, they serve as lanterns with water in them, how cool is that!?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14967535

In other news, we will be partnering with a local school soon to build one of our first recycle bins in the classroom! I am excited and nervous, and will certainly post pictures when it is all said and built!

Have a great beginning of fall everyone!

Trash does not exist because....

OK. I am going to get better at this whole blogging/technology thing. I used to have the excuse that I just got back from the Peace Corps and therefore am out of touch with technology, but since I have been back almost a year now...

ANYWAYS, today I wanted to mention an idea I had. One of the main underlying themes of this organization is that trash does not exist. This is a concept that I think can be challenging for many people, especially for Americans, since so much of our culture is based on consuming. But I am sticking to my guns, and I really think that little by little we can change this way of thinking, and start to use less, reuse more, consume less, give back more. So I am starting us off on a very short mad lib of sorts. I write the sentence, you all fill in the blank:

Trash does not exist because....I can compost.

Trash does not exist because....I can reuse my paper grocery store bags.

Trash does not exist because....

Now it's your turn! I want to hear your ideas, because after all, that is the whole point of Trash for Peace!

Folk Life Festival, week 2

Over a week has flown by already since I have returned home from the festival and from going back to visit Guatemala, which is hard to believe!

It was a truly incredible experience, one that is hard to describe succinctly in words, but since that is essentially the point of this blog, I will try to do just that!

Week two was busier, hotter, and all around amazing. Not only did we paint the section of the wall that we cemented with hand prints from our visitors, but we built two recycle bins as well! I was very thrilled to have those built, because I really wanted our visitors to see that you can bring these projects home to your own communities in many different ways. Building schools out of bottles is laborious; building a recycle bin not so much in comparison, and they both can be used to teach invaluable lessons.

In addition to the actual work we did, we all left with new friends from all over the world. One of my favorite parts of this trip was when my counterparts and I stayed after dinner for over an hour with members of the groups from Mali, Zambia, and Tonga, telling jokes from our respective countries. One person would tell part of the joke, then we would all translate, respectively. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard, which proves that not only is laughter a universal language, but that you do not need to speak the same tongue to make friends, smile, blow off some steam, and essentially, celebrate life.

There is so much more I could say, but I will pause for now. I was inspired by so many visitors, and now have endless ideas about other structures to build out of bottles (coffee tables, bedside tables, etc), and I would love any input you all have as well, so email, comment, however you want to get involved, I look forward to collaborating, in any language!

Smithsonian Folk life festival, week one!

Hi Y'all (Laura's new word these days...) Laura asked me to post this so "ya'll" can get a glimpse into what her week in DC has been like. It sounds like she is having a great time and meeting some wonderful people! Our intent is to create a forum (here on the blog, and on the site - www.trashforpeace.org - where all of these folks, and you too, can share ideas about how to live more sustainable, peaceful lives. Read below from Laura, and keep spreading the word!

This week working on the National mall in DC has been incredible, exhausting, and above all, an unforgettable experience. To keep myself from rambling on, here are my highlights so far:

*Sharing the bottle construction technique with hundreds of visitors
*Watching kids stuff bottles, and stuff, and stuff, without wanting to stop! And having a great time doing it!
*Learning about other Peace Corps volunteers work around the world
*Listening to Colombian music and dancing Colombian dance. Colombians have once again reminded me that if you have two legs and an ass you can shake it no matter what your dancing talent, they have no verguenza, or shame, you just shake what your momma gave ya and have an amazing time doing it!!
*Watching women from Kenya dance a traditional Kenyan dance, and then get up on the dance floor to dance to Colombian music and Rhythym and Blues music! No matter what your language or your culture, music is universal and brings people together like hardly anything else can!
*Reconnecting with my counterparts from Guatemala, and seeing them enjoy the United States for the first time
*Seeing my counterparts interact with people from all over the world. Communicating goes so far beyond words, and that is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen; a woman from Guatemala interacting with a woman from Ghana sitting next to a man from Belize sitting infront of a woman from Kenya. I feel like I have been a witness to the best parts of Peace Corps, the bringing together of different cultures and the growth of friendship and understanding. We all have made friends from all over the world now, over 15 different countries, and half of us cannot communicate with words.
*Spending 4th of July watching fireworks over the Washington Monument surrounded by people from all over the world. You really cant beat that, in my book!

Lastly, this week has been an incredible opportunity to talk to people who also care about the environment and sustainability, and I am so excited to see what the next week brings, and to share some of the ideas I have been cultivating, discussing, and learning every day!

Until then,
Ashe, or Thank you, (taught to me by the women from Kenya!)

Very first blog post!

Many of my friends and family asked me why I did not write a blog during my Peace Corps service. I could never really find a good answer, except for that it just did not feel right at the time. True to how things tend to work themselves out, I am glad that I decided to wait until now. This feels like the right time, and so with that, I start my adventure in blogging by choosing to focus on something that I am very passionate about; Trash for Peace.

In a way this passion chose me. I had always wanted to serve in the Peace Corps, but I discovered my enthusiasm for the environment, sustainability, and development during my service, and more specifically, through the bottle classroom construction project in Granados. This project is what ultimately led me to come up with the idea to start Trash for Peace.

Trash for Peace came about in part as a reaction to my culture shock, to coming back to live in this country after living with such a comparatively small carbon footprint for over three years in Guatemala. I see this organization as a way not only to bring this bottle construction technique back to this country, but to creatively and positively contribute to the slow process of changing our mentality about waste. The idea is to reduce, reuse, and THEN recycle, to ultimately waste less, and to be conscious of how our actions affect our planet and therefore each other. We absolutely cannot ignore how our actions are affecting our planet, and I do not believe it is too late to make progress in reversing some of the damage we have done. Every day I hear about new green technologies, new incredible things we are creating to foster a more sustainable future. Now I may be an optimist yes, but I am not naive. I do realize the capitalist nature of this country especially, and I am aware of much of the unfathomable hurdles that will have to be cleared to really become a "greener" planet. However, I refuse to give up, and I do believe that change, however slow, is still change, and it starts with one person, and sometimes, one action.

My goal is that the Trash for Peace recycle bins we build as communities in schools and other organizations will serve as creative reminders of how much waste we produce, and of the importance of changing our habits for a healthier and more peaceful planet. They are our own small technology that we are contributing, one that will grow and get better with the more people that participate and modify based on their own experience and creativity.

There are so many directions that this organization could go, so many different incredible organizations that are already out there that I could see us partnering with or sharing ideas with, which is what gets me most excited about this venture of Trash for Peace.

I welcome any new ideas and suggestions, either here or on our website, www.trashforpeace.org. In the meantime, this summer myself and two of my counterparts from Guatemala will be participating in the Smithsonian folk life festival in Washington, D.C. On the National mall, we will be building recycle bins out of bottles based on the Trash for Peace method, as well as building part of a bottle wall based on the Pura Vida Atitlan technique. To learn more about this, as well as the other incredible participants of the Smithsonian folk life festival, check out the Washington Post article from Saturday, June 25th:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/peace-corps-culture-goes-on-display-at-the-smithsonian-folklife-festival/2011/06/19/AG4sXHjH_story.html?wprss=rss_style

or the Peace Corps website:

http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=about.fiftieth.folklife

Hasta pronto,

Kutner