One man's trash is another man's treasure

What an excellent idea!

Edmonton centre proves one's trash is another's treasure
Last Updated: Monday, January 14, 2008 12:52 PM ET CBC News
A warehouse in downtown Edmonton that connects people dropping off unwanted items and others picking up recycled treasures has in six months diverted 26 tonnes of waste from the city's landfill.
The Edmonton Reuse Centre, which is run by the city at 100th Street and 103A Avenue, was started last summer to encourage people to reuse items and redirect waste from landfills.
More than 5,000 people have taken advantage of the centre in six months, said Amy Baxter, the facility's co-ordinator.
Coffee cans, trophies, yarn, floor tiles and tennis balls may seem like junk to some people but teachers, arts groups and bargain hunters are snapping up the treasures.
"I think one of the things that surprised me was that we take the egg cartons and when I first started we had hundreds and hundreds of egg cartons. We were a little concerned about them going out again. But now we can't keep them in," said Martha-Jean Clarke, who helps sort donations at the centre.
It is free for people to drop off items, while customers are charged a flat rate of $2 for a load or an annual fee of $20 for unlimited loads. There are no restrictions on the size of each load.
The centre does not accept furniture, clothing or appliances and works with other agencies and charities to ensure it is not taking items that could be used by them.
Supplies for arts and crafts most popular
Erin Tempest, an art student at the University of Alberta, was shopping at the centre for the first time, looking for items for her art projects.
"Some dried flowers, some cellophane, a paisley tie," she said, sharing what she had in her basket. "Stuff with cool textures is what I'm looking for or is what is appealing to me anyway."
In the next aisle, Veronique Drouin pushed her shopping cart carefully up and down the narrow aisles, scanning the overflowing bins.
The great grandmother shops at the centre two or three times a week, looking for embroidery and fabric.
Centre eyes expansion next year
Unloading a van full of Christmas wrapping and odds and ends, it was Elaine Hunter's sixth stop at the centre before her move to Vancouver.
"I'm cleaning out the basement. After 40 years of a big house, we're downsizing," she said. "I've had people taking things out of my car. I don't even get them in [the centre]."
Business is so brisk that the centre will be looking for a bigger home once the lease expires on its current location next year.
"We think it's just going to keep on getting busier and busier," said Baxter.
"We do lots of regulars but we also have lots of people who here finding this a whole new thing that they can do, so I think that's a huge thing that we're going to get bigger and better."

more on the hijab in soccer debate

Team wrapped up in headscarf debate

ban on hijab

This is ridiculous.

Temporary hijab ban sidelines Edmonton soccer team
Last Updated: Thursday, December 6, 2007 12:04 PM MT CBC News
A Muslim female soccer team in Edmonton has had to postpone all their games until the Alberta Soccer Association makes a final decision on players wearing headscarves on the field.
Half the girls on the Al-Ikhwat team wear a hijab, a headscarf worn by some Muslim females in keeping with their belief of dressing modestly.
The provincial association has temporarily banned players from wearing hijabs on the pitch after a referee asked a 14-year-old girl to leave a game in Calgary last month. He said her headscarf posed a safety risk.
The Alberta Soccer Association follows international rules that forbid all headgear, including sweatbands, but said it will review safety issues before making a final ruling on hijabs.
Amereen Chowdhury, a Grade 12 student who's played with the team for a year and a half wearing her hijab, says it's not dangerous.
"Talk to us directly. Ask us what it's like so we can show then that it's not a dangerous issue. Our hijabs don't have pins in it and they are tucked into our jersey," she told CBC News.
"This is basically a lack of knowledge on their behalf because they don't know how it's like to run or to exercise or to be physically active with a hijab on."
The team plays in the Edmonton and District Soccer Association's indoor league. Mike Thorne, the group's executive director, said women wearing hijabs have been playing in Edmonton for more than seven years without any problems.
The EDSA is disappointed the team has been sidelined, Thome said.
"We feel a great deal of remorse over accepting this team into our program and having their expectations shot down by Alberta Soccer, and we hope this ruling will get reversed and they can go back to playing the game they love."
The earliest Alberta soccer officials are expected to meet on the hijab issue is mid-December.
Soccer associations in B.C. and Ontario have made exceptions for hijabs while Quebec has banned it.