Recycling ~ Any real value?

Is there real value in recycling? This question was posed to me many times, especially when my friends come over to my house and see the recycling bin that i have in my kitchen. The argument is that one individual cannot make an impact, it has to be the major companies or government that take the lead and make more efforts in conservation.

While I agree that in the short term to have maximum impact, these efforts should be driven by large companies and the government. However, that does not negate the impact that we have! The value of conservation can start from home, and our actions also influences our future generation. Recycling can be contagious!

I remembered a lesson/sharing by one of my uni professors (prof. victor savage). He shared about how he gave an overseas talk on conservation/reduction of carbon emission and was challenged by one of the audience. The audience asked him what car he drove to school. My prof was proud to say that he took a bus instead. Of course, he then gained the respect of the audience and me as well =)

The point that I'm trying to make is that all actions start from home and how you live your personal life. In large companies and governments, it is still the individual who makes the decision or at least promote conservation efforts. If we always have this mentality that as individuals there is nothing much that we can do, things will never move, and things will never change.

If you don't believe in recycling, do cut down on consumption as an alternative to conservation. Choose wisely and make sound decisions. Avoid purchasing items with excessive packaging and say no to plastic bags/styrofoam etc etc Just take the first step today, and after a while, it just becomes easier and easier.