MI Company, Schools Look To Make Graduation Season Greener
Thursday, May 8, 2014
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – 'Tis the season for pomp and circumstance and caps and gowns, and one group of Michiganders wants to make sure those gowns don't go from graduation ceremonies to garbage cans.
Seth Yon worked in the graduation apparel industry for years and says he launched Greener Grads because he got tired of seeing graduation gowns end up in the trash or in the back of closets.
"I thought, ‘Well, there's got to be a better way,’” he recalls. “’These products could easily be reused a dozen times.’
“And that's our goal. We want this spring to start recovering as many gowns as possible."
The group hopes to recover 1 million gowns from 2014 graduates, and will have recycling boxes at several ceremonies.
Greener Grads has also partnered with Goodwill Industries in west Michigan to allow past graduates to turn in their gowns at those locations.
Nationwide, an estimated 5 million graduation gowns are sold each year, with most made from non-biodegradable polyester blends.
Yon says trying to recycle them shows that helping the Earth doesn't have to be complicated.
"It's as simple as you and I brushing our teeth and turn the water off,” he says. “There's things environmentally that we can do that are really easy and responsible, and this to me is one of those examples in the way of graduation."
Yon says gowns of all sizes and colors will be accepted for recycling. More information is at GreenerGrads.org.
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