Earth Day Teach In

The Green Ticker is Counting on You

By Anonymous -

photo credit: me
photo credit: me


You know what makes me happy? Water bottle filling stations. It's fun to discover one that’s on my usual path, and on occasion, I’ve even gone on scouting missions around campus and the community for them. My own little scavenger hunt with the prize of a re-filled bottle of fresh, filtered water. Instead of tipping the bottle at every angle while trying not to drop it in the drain of a regular drinking fountain it’s so nice to place my bottle upright in the filling area and have the water pour neatly into it. It’s like having someone open the door for you when your arms are full. It’s not an earth-shattering gesture, but it really does make a difference. Little victories, friends, 

The coolest thing about the filling station, besides its very existence, is the little counter at the top right, officially called a Green Ticker. Yes, I looked it up at www.elkay.com (so many water filling station choices and sustainability case studies!) The Green Ticker measures the number of 20 oz. single use water bottles that are being diverted from the waste stream. Also, in case you are wondering about the other (hopefully) green light, the filling station filters work for 3,000 gallons and reduce lead, particulates, chlorine, taste and odor.  Of course, that’s all fabulous, but the thing about the Green Ticker that I really love isn't so obvious. The Green Ticker is counting and connecting me and everyone else who fills a water bottle and it’s tallying up our combined actions. That’s the magic: OUR COMBINED ACTIONS*. In a world full of crazy and often overwhelming news it’s easy to believe that nothing we do really matters, but the Green Ticker says otherwise. 5,398 bottles otherwise, according to my last visit to a favorite filling station. That’s one 20 oz. bottle every day of the year for 83 years that WE (you and you and you and me) kept out of the waste stream. WOW! 

Just for fun, imagine this: 5,398 bottles x 20 oz. equals 107,960 gallons of water from just one filling station. An Olympic-size swimming pool holds 660,253 gallons of water. Now imagine that whole pool stacked with plastic water bottles. *!!*#@   My thoughts, exactly 😉 It’s not so easy to swim through water bottles.

So, thank you, Green Ticker, for making us count, individually together!

*If you’re inspired to learn more about how our combined actions make a difference visit one of my favorite places www.allatonce.org You'll be glad you did. 


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