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Barrington Votes Out with Plastic Bags, In With Reusable Bags

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans,

bulletinbagthunderEarlier this month, Barrington became the first town in Rhode Island to ban plastic checkout bags.

The Town Council approved the two-year ban at all retail stores, farmers’ markets, flea markets and restaurants starting January 1, 2013. Under the ban, stores will still be able to use plastic produce, bakery and deli counter bags and retailers will be able to charge a five cent fee for recyclable paper bags. Of course, shoppers who bring their own reusable bags (custom or otherwise!) don’t have to pay anything.

“We applaud the town council’s decision to move forward with this initiative to protect the Bay and local waterways from plastic bag pollution,” said Channing Jones, Program Associate with Environment Rhode Island, a citizen-based advocacy group. “Nothing we use for five minutes should pollute the Bay for future generations.”

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Fighting for Reusable Shopping Bags: If a Teen Can Do It…

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans, , ,

fighting_for_reusable_shopping_bagsHave you heard of Activist Abby? If not, take note. Abby Goldberg is an amazing activist (and she’s just 13 years old). She learned about how plastic bags have caused damage to our environment. Instead of leaving school and never thinking about it again, she started a two-year-long school project (to be completed by 8th grade graduation) to make a video convincing her hometown to ban plastic shopping bags.

Seven months into her efforts to encourage reusable shopping bags in her town, she discovered that the oil and chemical industries were ahead of the game. They joined forces with lobbyists and politicians to draft a bill to make it illegal for towns across Illinois to create plastic bag bans.  The bill was thinly veiled as a green environmental bill with requirements for low-volume plastic bag recycling and positioned it as a model bill for all states. It passed in a late-night session without fanfare or press, which made her realize all of her work could be for nothing.

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Sustainability on Campus: University of Maine is Making a Difference

Green Issues, , ,

usgbc_logoThe Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2012 Edition was recently released, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council. The guide profiles—yep, you guessed it—322 schools that demonstrate a notable commitment to sustainability. It lists vital stats on eco-friendliness and covers everything from solar panel use and green majors to fair-trade fashion and green options for getting around campus.

In 2011, Green Rating scores were tallied for 768 colleges and universities. Of those, only 18 schools attained top scores of 99. Bulletin Bag [.com], based in Maine, is proud to say that the University of Maine is among this elite group of 18.

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Custom Shopping Bags Third Most Popular Promotional Product in 2011

Bulletin Bag Products, Promotion Ideas

paper_plastic_neither_bagLooking for custom shopping bags for your organization? You’re not alone. The Promotional Products Association International has reported that, in the United States, custom reusable bags moved from the fourth to the third largest promotional product segment. Bag sales totaled $1.27 billion in 2011!

We’re not surprised. As more and more towns, cities, and municipalities seek ways to reduce plastic bag consumption, organizations have been running to snap up custom grocery bags to get in the hands of clients and prospects. We’ve been saying for quite a while how great reusable bags are for so many reasons (environmental ones aside).  Custom shopping bags as tradeshow giveaways give loads of exposure at the event, combined with the exposure when the bags are reused over and over–providing impressions every time they’re used. Don’t remember us saying that? Read our blog from back in 2010: https://www.bulletinbag.com/blog/conference-bag-giveaways.html

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Reusable Bags Do Not Cause Illness

Green Issues,

paper_plastic_neither_bagIf you’re like us, you’re getting tired of “studies” that make reusable grocery bags out to be nasty breeding grounds for every gross germ in the universe and the reason why plastic is better. The thing that really makes you sick? Not using common sense!

You may have read that last week, some Oregon researchers investigated a recent outbreak of norovirus amongst members of a girls’ soccer team. We won’t gross you out with the details, but suffice it to say that a girl got sick, and seven other players and chaperones fell ill even though nobody had come in direct contact with the original patient after she first displayed symptoms. The common link? **Insert scary music** A reusable grocery bag of snacks that had been stored in the bathroom.Yep, all of the sick people ate cookies that were stored in that reusable bag. How did the nasty bug get to the cookies? You can read the dirty details here.

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Graduating in a Recycled Plastic Bottle

Green Issues, ,

This year’s Rhode Island College graduates will receive their diplomas in recycled plastic bottles! Not literally, of course, but their traditional black caps and gowns are made from an eco-friendly material called GreenWeaver. The fabric is spun from molten plastic pellets, which are produced completely from recycled plastic bottles (about 23 per gown).

greenweaver

After the ceremony, the gowns will be recycled (again!) into carpet. We think this is an amazing way to keep reusing materials, and yet another reason why recycling is so important. Swapping your disposable bottles for reusable water bottles is best, but if you can’t bear to do that, at least make sure they’re properly recycled!

Nonprofit Water Bottle Giveaway: Ten Days Left!

Promotion Ideas, ,

your_logo_imgOur water bottle division’s nonprofit water bottle giveaway contest isn’t over yet! Join the seven great schools and nonprofits already entered to win 100 Child Safe Aluminum Water Bottles for a fundraiser! Check out these awesome entries (so far!):

1. “The Pittsburg Tote Bag Project collects new & gently used tote bags to donate to local food pantries. We will use the bottles to encourage reuse & give back to our supporters who donate from the community! We want to live our mission so reusable bottles are a great PR tool for us to help our neighbors”

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RuMe Folding Bags: Now at Bulletin Bag [.com]

Bulletin Bag Products, Promotion Ideas, ,

Bulletin Bag is very excited to announce that we now carry RuMe folding bags! All of us here are in love with everything about these awesome bags–from the colors and patterns (more than 20 to choose from!), to the construction, you really can’t go wrong with selecting RuMe fold-up bags for your messaging vehicle.


So why are we so excited about this bag? The Medium RuMe bag features 11.5” handles, box-stitched sides and bottom, and water-resistant fabrics that hold 50 pounds. Oh, and they’re machine washable. Big bonus!

Win a Custom Water Bottle Fundraiser

Promotion Ideas, ,

your_logo_imgOur custom water bottle division (Bulletin Bottle [.com] ) is giving away 100 Child Safe Aluminum Water Bottles to one lucky school or nonprofit to use as a fundraiser, and the proceeds are 100% theirs to keep!

It’s easy to enter your favorite school or nonprofit. Post on their Facebook wall why yours should win custom water bottles, and spread the word! On April 20 the post with the most ‘likes’ wins, so tell everyone to ‘like’ Bulletin Bottle [.com] and ‘like’ your post!

Have a worthy organization in mind? Nominate them! Ready to enter? Want to learn more? Visit Bulletin Bottle’s contest page or facebook.com/bulletinbottle

Custom Reusable Bag Surplus? Give to the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project!

Green Issues

We were recently contacted by The Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project for some information on custom reusable bags. We were so struck by their story that we just had to share it with our readers.

pittsburg_tote_bag_project

In 2009, Sue Kerr, a social worker, brought her clients to a food distribution at the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank. She noticed the awkward containers people were toting food home with: rolling suitcases, wheeled coolers, backpacks. She also saw the struggles of those who didn’t — or couldn’t — bring something of their own.

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