​ReClaim It! was started by Crackedpots. They recognized the need for a place where materials could be rescued from disposal. They created a place where the creative citizens of Portland can find unique materials. ReClaim It! is a nonprofit art and reuse retail store that salvages material from the Metro transfer station (operated by Recology) for artists, homeowners, and DIYers to Reuse, Repair, and Reimagine.

Thank you AOR members for giving me the opportunity to serve you through as the AOR chair! I have great appreciation for the AOR community, and I am humbly at your service.

Inspiration often arrives in unexpected packages. See how five local artists - Erinn Kathryn, Hilary Pfeiffer, Dan Pillers, Amanda Triplett and Austin Turley - transformed an unpredictable stream of trash from the Metro Central transfer station into art. 

Don Waggoner, pioneer of Oregon's - and the nation's first - bottle bill, has passed away. The Oregonian reported his passing on July 10th, and his work on the bottle bill was noted:

Spending my days amidst can and bottle recyclers, I don’t tend to give as much thought to food. Sure, I try to buy organic. I use my compost bin. I even give leftover scraps to my three backyard chickens. But what about the food that doesn’t even make it our plates? The wasted fruit and veggies that didn’t even have a chance? What about the ugly food?

At the Sustainable Oregon Conference 2016, keynote speaker Jordan Figueiredo stole our hearts by laying out the virtues of Loving Ugly Food. What is ugly food? I’ll let these photos speak for themselves. 

Portland, ORE – Today, Portland City Council adopted an ordinance, including code language, which requires projects seeking a demolition permit of a house or duplex to fully deconstruct that structure if it was built in 1916 or earlier or is a designated historic resource. With Council’s unanimous approval of that ordinance, Portland became the first city in the country to ensure that valuable materials from our demolished hous