Greetings Curio readers. Fall is here, and that means you can kick back and not rake your leaves. Save that yard work energy and channel it towards International E-Waste Day on October 14th. Gather up all your old charging cables, small appliances, tech accessories, and batteries, and make a trip to your local recycling center that handles electronic materials. Don’t send those precious materials to the garbage dump; give them a new life as components in a new and improved device.

Hey Curio Peeps. Happy Plastic Free July! Our reliance on single-use disposable plastics has caused a pollution crisis. There’s a mass of tangled plastic in the Pacific Ocean that was twice the size of Texas in 2018. Microplastics are everywhere, including our bloodstreams, which may increase our risk of heart disease among other ailments. But you can turn the tide. Recycling is okay, but you know what would be even better? Opting out of using plastics in the first place.

I advised you not to rake your leaves in the fall to help pollinators survive the winter. Now that spring is here, have you considered not mowing your lawn? At least until the end of May (#NoMowMay)? Flowering plants that we traditionally classify as weeds, like dandelions, are an essential early food source for many of the same pollinators. Take a break! You don’t have to rake your leaves in the fall or mow your lawn in the spring. Think about what else you can do with that time and effort, like taking a walk and smelling the flowers/weeds.