Tracy Farnsworth went straight from a business track in high school to a full-time job in mortgage banking in Burlington, Vermont. After having children, she built a freelance career in content writing and took online classes as time allowed. She completed Social Media Marketing and Digital Marketing certificate programs with Ireland's online Shaw Academy and completed several courses in SEO and analytics. In her free time, she's the “mom” to a very clingy rat terrier, and the pair walk at least a mile every day. She's also a novice baker who is trying to master the art of sourdough bread.


  • Throw It Out or Recycle It? Each State’s Rules on Electronics Recycling (UPDATED 2021)

    August 17, 2021

    Think about the average lifespan of electronics. Most people will say you’re doing great if you can keep your laptop or cell phone going for five years. A printer is usually lucky to make it past nine years. Monitors have an average lifespan of eight years. Refurbished items have shorter lifespans.What happens when it’s time […]

    • Ten Unusual Places Where Researchers Have Found Microplastics

      July 27, 2021

      Any plastic piece that’s less than five millimeters in length is known as microplastic. To better understand how tiny these pieces are, a grain of rice is a little larger. It’s about the size of a pencil eraser.Microplastics come from plastic that’s not recycled and breaks down. Small fragments chip or flake off as the […]

      • Get Back to the Basics: Know How Recycling Works To Make It Effective

        July 19, 2021

        Recycling goes back farther than you might think. In the 1800s, collectors were known as “ragmen.” They would go from home to home looking to purchase people’s old rags. The ragmen sold those rags to industries that turned them into paper.At the same time, workers at local garbage sites would sort through the trash that […]

        • Restaurants That Focus on the Best Recycling Practices

          July 4, 2021

          In 2018, over 292 million tons of waste were generated in the U.S. It breaks down to almost 5 pounds per person, per day. Everyone needs to make an effort to reduce waste. It’s not just a problem for consumers. It’s something that hotels, restaurants, industrial companies, retailers, schools, government agencies, manufacturing plants, and consumers […]

          • Michigan Develops a $97 Million Plan to Improve Recycling

            June 15, 2021

            How well do the residents in your state do when it comes to recycling? In “The 50 States of Recycling: A State-By-State Assessment of Containers and Packaging Recycling Rates,” Maine and Vermont ranked the highest. They were followed by Massachusetts, Oregon, Connecticut, New York, Minnesota, and Michigan.Michigan did well with a recycling rate of 48% […]

            • Products and Tips That Help You Reduce Waste While Grocery Shopping

              June 1, 2021

              Think about the last time you went grocery shopping. Starting with the produce section, you probably ended up with several plastic bags that contained your potatoes, some fruit, the cauliflower you needed, and your onions. Continuing to the meat and seafood area, you have more plastic and styrofoam. Even if you buy from the butcher or […]

              • Canada’s Tackling Plastics Recycling: Could the Same Ideas Help in the USA?

                March 22, 2021

                The Canadian government came up with a plan to eliminate plastic waste. By 2030, Canada hopes to achieve zero plastic waste. Right now, around 3 million tons of plastic waste are disposed of and less than 10% of that plastic is recycled. Much of it goes to the landfill, but an alarming 29,000 tons end […]

                • 10 Devices That Contain Lithium-Ion Batteries & How To Dispose Of Them

                  March 15, 2021

                  In a lithium-ion battery, the anode and cathode hold the lithium ions. An electrolyte carries the lithium ions from one area to the other through the part called the separator. The movement between the anode and cathode creates the electrical charge at the positive and negative parts of the battery.As an electric current is used […]

                  • Breweries That Are Working to Stop Waste

                    March 8, 2021

                    Brewery giant Sierra Nevada gained some attention when it announced it was creating a recycling co-op for brewers. The co-op will help both breweries and small businesses in North Carolina recycle responsibly. If you think about the things a brewery uses every day, the list of potential trash becomes quite long. There are the grain and […]

                    • 10 Ways to Make Money With Recyclables

                      March 1, 2021

                      Disposing of recyclables is easy when it’s an item you can put in your recycling container and move out to the curb for pick-up services. What about the items that can’t be recycled curbside? Did you know that those items can put cash in your pocket? Here are the top 10 ways to make money […]