Green R&T: Our efforts to work clean

Greening our commute | Recycling & more | What You Can Do

Rings & Things recognizes that the jewelry industry is not the cleanest way of making a living. That makes it all the more important to try conducting our business in the most earth-friendly way we can. On this page we collect tidbits of information about Rings & Things' work on going green.

Greening Our Commute

SMART Awards

Rings & Things is in the first group of businesses certified by the City of Spokane, Washington for their implementation of green and sustainable management practices. The Spokane supplier of beads and jewelry components was awarded certification in the categories of Waste Reduction and of Transportation, as part of the city’s SMART Program.

Rings & Things gained recognition for its ongoing efforts to divert as much material as possible from the waste stream both in its warehouse and at community events, as well as for its award-winning voluntary participation in the statewide Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) program.

The SMART (Sustainable Management of Assets, Resources and Technology) Business Recognition Program is designed to encourage Spokane businesses to adopt policies and practices that encourage good management of financial, built, natural and human capital. The program was developed by the City’s Business & Development Services Department in partnership with Avista, Eastern Washington University, and the Washington State Department of Ecology.

“When we asked businesses what we could do to encourage them to adopt these practices, they told us that they needed help marketing their commitment to sustainability to their customers,” says Mayor Mary Verner. “More and more people want to do business with companies that share their commitment to protecting the environment and resources.”

Under the program, businesses can apply to be recognized at either a “participant” or “certified” level in a variety of categories, including energy efficiency, waste reduction and recycling, renewable energy, water conservation, green building, transportation/commute trip reduction, and pollution prevention. Businesses also can seek special “innovation” recognition in each of the categories.

“We hope people will see this as a seal of approval for these businesses,” the Mayor says. “We see it as an additional opportunity to grow our green economy.”

This is the only such program in Eastern Washington and third statewide. The other programs are in Kirkland and Olympia. The City will accept applications later this year from other businesses who want to seek this recognition. A more detailed program description is available on the City’s web site.

Rings & Things encourages other businesses to apply for recognition in this program.

Commute-Trip Reduction (CTR) Program

At Rings & Things, we actively promote commuting alternatives through "Trippin’ to R&T" and the Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) program, using tools such as http://www.mycommute.org. We and our stellar Employee Transportation Coordinator, Selina Shehan (at center in the photo), have won a variety of awards for our commitment to “greening” our workers’ commutes.

A few highlights:

April 2009:
In recognition of its CTR efforts, Rings & Things is awarded a worksite commute bike by the mayor of Spokane. Now all of our employees can run errands without burning gasoline!

January 2009:
Selina Shehan and Rings & Things win a second “Way to Go!” Pinnacle award.

The Pinnacle Award is given to just three employers in our state each year, based on innovative trip reduction strategies, ETC commitment and participation, continued enhancement of their CTR program and management support.

September 2008:
Rings & Things receives the Washington state Governor’s Award for Outstanding Achievement by a Voluntary Employer in the CTR program.

January 2007:
2006 Pinnacle award.

September 2006:
September All Star Coach award, Selina Shehan.

Recycling & More

Recycling & more: Pictured here is our Breakroom Recycling Center. Rings & Things works hard to tread lightly on the planet! One of many recycling centers in the warehouse, our employee breakroom provides receptacles for food-related recyclable: cardboard, paper, plastic, tin, aluminum and glass. We even take apart our old coffee makers and other small appliances, in order to recycle parts like the copper in the cords.

Jordan Earnest, R&T showroom guy, talks about the value of these efforts: "I've actually taken to it, and started recycling at my house. I encourage others to do the same," Jordan says. "It's so simple and makes such a difference. After working here, I've seen that you can recycle most garbage. I had no idea before. At Rings & Things, we only fill one garbage can per day with trash; the rest of our waste is recycled. For 80-90 people in one place, that's incredible!"

Other ways we reduce, reuse, recycle and try to benefit the planet include:

Collecting white paper, mixed paper, heavy paper, corrugated cardboard and batteries for recycling. There's even a "Technotrash" receptacle for recycling larger electronics equipment. Plus, employees can bring in personal items if they don't have a good way of recycling those items from home.

Using eco-friendly packing peanuts made of cornstarch, whenever possible, instead of styrofoam. How reusable are they? These "peanuts" are edible! (But we don't recommend the flavor!)

Re-using other packing materials in shipments that we receive, including cardboard boxes.

Repurposing heavy paper-towel tubes for packaging nonstick metal-clay work surfaces.

Equipping the warehouse with a tankless water heater that heats small amounts of water only as needed. This saves money and conserves energy that would otherwise be wasted to keep unneeded water hot. (According to one estimate, U.S. consumers have wasted over six billion dollars since July 2006 keeping unused water reserves hot in homes and businesses.)

Selling cottage-industry items. Recycled-glass beads from Africa and Indonesia, resin beads from Indonesia, and Karen Hill Tribe fine silver from Thailand help sustain traditional, low-impact lifestyles on our planet.

Printing our catalogs and supplements on as much recycled paper as possible. (We always use 100% recycled electrons to publish our e-newsletter and website!).

Keeping our web pages simple and fast to download. This not only makes them easier to use, but also minimizes computer power usage and reduces the carbon footprint for both us and you, our customers.

Taking special measures in summer and winter to reduce heating and air-conditioning costs while keeping comfortable temperatures in our warehouse.

Sponsoring recycling at the annual Spokane arts & crafts fair, Artfest. The program includes providing recycling receptacles for both patrons and sellers, culling recyclables that get put in the trash, sorting all collected recyclables and overseeing pick-up by a local recycling processor. This process doesn't just reduce what goes in the landfill; it also saves event sponsors a lot of money in dumping fees.

Participating in the Spokane River Cleanup. In a recent year, the Cleanup's 750 volunteers collected 12,000 pounds (6 tons) of garbage from along the Spokane River's banks. Better yet, the City of Spokane was able to recycle 2,500 pounds of it! (See pictures of the River Cleanup.)

Supporting the Asthma Walk .

What You Can Do

Businesses often claim that implementing environmentally friendly practices will hurt the bottom line, but Rings & Things has been disproving this claim for years! Russ even takes used coffee grounds and food scraps from the breakroom to use in his composting pile at home. The latest buzz is that he is looking into the possibility of adding a worm bin to the warehouse for disposing of most food scraps — a great way to not only reduce what goes to the landfill but also make fertilizer for the garden!

Business owners can learn about Earth-friendly practices, Earth Day events and environmental news at the Earth Day Network. For general recycling information, see The Internet Consumer Recycling Guide.

Illustration/Reprinting Information — All text and illustrations are property of Rings & Things
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Rings & Things • PO Box 450 • Spokane, WA 99210-0450
1 (800) 366-2156 • (509) 252-2900 • fax: (509) 838-2602

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