Recycling is overrated

First, I admit that I wrote that title to get your attention.  It's really only partially true.  Recycling, for the most part, is good for the environment.  There are some very legitimate concerns that I have about low-wage, low-quality jobs (see David Pellows book Garbage Wars) and there are numerous examples of greenwashing, when the environmental benefits are blown way out of proportion. That being said, to recycle is better than to just throw stuff away.  The problem is it is an individual action that gives people validation to continue to consume without consideration for the consequences.  It is sort of like those "lite" snacks that just give people license to eat more.  Really, out of the slogan "reduce, reuse, recycle" recycling is meant to be the last option.  Furthermore, environmental problems require collective action and organizing groups of people around shared interests.  It requires political and community engagement.  It requires definitively more than sticking some aluminum in a recycling bin.  So let go of the excuse that "at least I recycle" and give some thought to not buying the stuff in the first place and spend your time joining an environmental advocacy group instead.