For more information about Keeping It Green Hawaii, visit www.recyclehawaii.org or call 969-2012.
On America Recycles Day in November, Recycle Hawaii and Earth-Friendly Schools Hawaii announced the 2011 recipients of the Keeping It Green Hawaii awards: Annie’s Island Fresh Burgers in Kealakekua, Natural Pacific Tofu in Keaau, the Volcano Art Center and Volcano Garden Arts/Ono Cafe.
“Keeping It Green Hawaii is a program that highlights projects and activities of schools, organizations, businesses and government agencies that promote recycling, resource awareness and sustainable practices on the island of Hawaii,” explained Paul Buklarewicz, executive director of Recycle Hawaii.
“The program recognizes the positive ‘green’ practices that are being implemented in our community and helps to motivate others to care for our environment and address local and global issues such as renewable energy, climate change, the loss of natural habitat and the preservation of indigenous peoples’ cultures.”
To be recognized, participants must meet at least three of the following criteria: Practice the 3 Rs: “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”; protect our native Hawaiian forest; promote organic farming; develop alternative energy; support sustainable industry and green building practices; implement energy and resource conservation practices; create open space “greenways”; support youth programs that utilize service learning projects designed to protect our natural resources; educate our community about climate change and envision possible solutions; honor and respect Native Hawaiian gathering rights and cultural practices.
“In celebration of America Recycles Day, locally known as Hawaii Recycles Day, (we) honored the serious work being done in our community to address issues concerning the environment and sustainability,” said Buklarewicz. “Since initiating the Keeping It Green Hawaii program in 2007, dozens of schools and businesses have shared their initiatives to promote green practices and sustainability.”
The Volcano Art Center is recognized for its continual stewardship of an old growth ohia and koa forest at its Niaulani campus, and sharing this natural resource with the public in a way that encourages sustainable tourism for visitors and fostering land stewardship by volunteer residents who replace invasive species with native plants.
VAC is a leader in honoring Hawaiian cultural practices and gathering rights and has provided Recycle Hawaii a venue for its Artists & the Environment presentations for visiting school groups throughout the year. VAC uses biodegradable and compostable products for artist receptions and events, has installed containers dedicated to recyclables and reuses shipping boxes and packing peanuts, has upgraded to greener lighting and held a zero-waste event.
Artist Ira Ono’s Volcano Garden Arts also ships artwork using reusable cardboard containers and packaging materials. In addition to works by local artists, Volcano Garden Arts sells books on organic gardening and alternative sources of energy and designed its gallery and restaurant space using skylights and windows for energy conservation and climate control.
Notable in moving away from plastics and styrofoam use are two island food service establishments that have adopted the use of compostable takeout containers and corn- or soy-based utensils: South Kona’s Annie’s Island Fresh Burgers and the Ono Café, a “green cuisine” vegetarian restaurant at Volcano Garden Arts.
Annie’s and the Ono Café both source their more nutritious organic food locally at farmers’ markets, and the Ono Café grows its own herbs and edible flowers, including mint and nasturtiums for use in their salads. Both restaurants compost all of their kitchen scraps. And at Café Ono, some of the kitchen scraps feed the resident goat, Ernest.
Natural Pacific Tofu in Keaau composts the soy bean pulp left over in the tofu-making process and donates some of it to customers who use it for livestock feed. The company never purchases packaging materials, but reuses from 40 to 50 cardboard boxes a week from local grocery stores for shipping their tofu product off island. Walk-in customers are encouraged to bring or donate their own bags when picking up tofu at the Shipman Park facility. Natural Pacific Tofu staff conserves water and energy by making sure that all electricity (except for refrigerators) and water is turned off at the end of the work day. All paper is recycled when it can no longer be reused as scratch paper.
“A common thread shared at all of the Keeping It Green Hawaii awardees is a focus on the 3 R’s — that is Reduce, Reuse and Recycling of paper, cardboard, cans, plastic and glass containers, the separation and recycling of HI5 beverage containers, and conservation of water and energy usage,” said Buklarewicz.
For more information about Keeping It Green Hawaii, visit www.recyclehawaii.org or call 969-2012.