The Indiana Department of Environmental Management and Marsh Pharmacies are teaming up next weekend to host Clean Out Your Medicine Cabinet Day once again. Bring your unwanted pharmaceuticals to any Central Indiana Marsh Pharmacy from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 13 or 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 14, and they will be disposed of in an environmentally-friendly manner.

The following items will be accepted if brought in their original containers. (Leave the name of the medication visible on the label, but mark out personal information.)

• Prescription medications
• Over-the-counter medications
• Vitamins and nutritional supplements
• Veterinary medications
• Sharps or needles in re-sealable hard plastic containers

Not sure about a particular item? Call (317) 594-2408 or visit IDEM’s recycling site for more info.

Thanks to the 2012 Super Bowl Host Committee, we now have a winning strategy. The 1st and Green household challenge encourages fans and non-fans alike to reduce carbon emissions and save water through simple actions like carpooling, taking shorter showers, and turning off the water when brushing your teeth. Though the challenge officially ends when Super Bowl 2012 begins, we hope you’ll incorporate eco-friendly habits well beyond the postgame celebration. The host committee also plans to incorporate several eco-friendly practices that will make Super Bowl 2012 even greener, including multi-source recycling, food rescue, using biodegradable or compostable disposable plates, utensils, and napkins; and opting for electronic communication instead of printed materials when appropriate.

The Super Bowl may be a celebration of all things big (big crowds, big plays, big money spent on commercials), but with your help, we can make its environmental impact a little smaller. Besides, the only thing better than a victory for the home team is a victory for the home team AND the planet!

Never fear, spring chicken, Rush Hour Recycling is here for early birds like you! Through our partnership with Workforce, Inc., and Createc Corporation, Green Piece Indy is pleased to offer our award-winning recycling program once again this spring. Rush Hour Recycling allows morning commuters to recycle cardboard, electronics AND EPS foam the easy way…simply pull up to one of our designated locations, pop the trunk, and let staff do the heavy lifting. View a full list of recyclable items.

We’ll be at the following locations between 7 and 9 a.m. on these dates.

March 5 (South): Sam’s Club, 1101 Windhorst Way, Greenwood
March 10 (Northwest): Bjava, 5510 Lafayette Rd.
March 17 (Northeast): Hawthorne Plaza, 62nd and Binford
March 24 (East): Lazy Daze, Irving Theater and Jack and Jills Antiques, 10 S. Johnson Ave.
March 31 (West) Family Video, 7301 Rockville Rd.
April 7 (Downtown): Earth House, 237 N. East St.

Tend to spend rush hour sleeping in? Take cardboard and electronics to the Chancellor A. Keesling Community Recycling Center (754 N. Sherman) and clean, white EPS foam (#6) to Createc Corporation (6835 N. Guion Road) during daytime hours.

OUT: Conning friends into paying for your locally grown food.
IN: Bringing friends (and paying nothing) to attend FoodCon on March 5 at the Harrison Center for the Arts. Thanks to the joint efforts of the Harrison Center and Indiana Humanities Council, everyone has the opportunity to enjoy, learn about, and be immersed in the total sensory experience that is food, while also taking in art exhibitions, poetry, films and lectures, and hand-on activities. Sample the goods while mingling with local farmers, urban gardeners, and other fascinating foodies.

OUT: Cramming whole pies into your piehole, watching your waistline grow.
IN: Cramming knowledge into your noggin’ about how food grows. Prior to FoodCon,the Indiana Humanities Council (located across the street from the Harrison Center) will host a pre-party event from 5-6 p.m.  This event is in conjunction with Food for Thought, a statewide program developed by the Indiana Humanities Council to address issues like hunger, nutrition, food production, obesity, food security, and safety.

Bon appétit!

Now, we realize that you may not have a fleet of unwanted wheelchairs tucked away in your garage, but perhaps your orthopedist’s or physician’s office does. Or your church, community group, or school. DAO is also accepting blankets to donate to Haiti. To donate, simply drop off supplies at DAO’s eastside or westside facilities. Or email contactdao@aol.com or call 632-1919 to arrange a pick-up. Even if you don’t have items to donate, you can volunteer to help sort three semi-truck loads of medical supplies (call 242-9077 for details).

And don’t forget DAO when it’s time to recycle appliances, mattresses, pallets, and about 50 other hard-to-recycle things.

An earthquake may have ravaged Haiti, but it hasn’t devastated the human spirit. We say this without reservation: Never has a recycling drive been more important!

Myth: Only homeless people ride the bus.
Truth: People from all walks of life - rich and poor, young and old, black, white and Latino - ride the bus. Our favorite reasons to ride are concern for the environment and it’s a relaxing way to commute. Those who take the bus often use the downtime to read, listen to their Mp3 player, or text with friends. Now doesn’t that sound better than navigating snowy conditions or battling road rage?

Myth: Riding the bus doesn’t really save money.
Truth: It does, and it also reduces pollution since it gets your car off the road. A one-way pass is only $1.75 (or $0.85 for seniors and kids). When you factor in the cost of wear and tear on your car, plus parking for downtown commuters, it’s easy to see why riding the bus is a more budget-friendly choice. Even better: Riding the IndyGo Green Line from the Indianapolis International Airport to downtown is just $7…way cheaper than a cab ride.

Myth: Planning a bus trip is about as complicated as doing one’s own taxes.
Truth: Let IndyGo’s Trip Planner help you plot your next destination, whether it’s the Children’s Museum, Conseco Fieldhouse, Eagle Creek Park, your place of employment, or a combination of these. The Trip Planner serves as a GPS of sorts, telling you at exactly what time to walk to the bus stop, what time to board, and so on.

Traffic driving you crazy? Get on the bus, Gus. Forward this GPI to at least three friends and we’ll randomly select a winner to receive an IndyGo Day Pass.

Reason #1: Even in a city known for its pork tenderloin sandwich consumption, anyone can become a lean green machine.
Learn to lower your carbon footprint, reduce energy bills, and reduce your impact on the planet at an upcoming Living Lean & Green workshop. Upcoming five-week workshops begin Feb. 18 at St. Thomas Aquinas Church (4600 N. Illinois St.) and March 10 at Christian Theological Seminary (1000 W. 42nd St.).

Reason #2: The housing market may have gone bust, but green building in Indy is booming.
LEED, follow, or get out of the way at the Indiana Building Green symposium, taking place March 10-11 at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Early bird registration ends Feb. 28.

Reason #3: People are movin’ downtown and participation in recycling is movin’ on up.
More people living and working downtown simultaneously means less CO2 generated during commutes. Public recycling bins in Broad Ripple, on Mass Ave, and in the Mile Square mean more opportunities to do your part. Special electronics recycling events like those taking place this month at Simon Malls means more convenient ways to responsibly dispose of TVs, VCRs, computers, and more.

Speaking of convenient ways to recycled your electronics, Rush Hour Recycling, our award-winning recycling program gets back into gear starting March 5. Stay tuned for details.

Instead of: Watching Peyton Manning spend too much time on the bench.
Try: Asking your neighborhood association to spend a little on an eco-friendly bench for neighbors to enjoy. Recycle Design, an Anderson based company, makes park benches (as well as recycling bins, trash cans, planters, and other products) out of recycled materials.

Instead of: Raining on the Saints’ parade (c’mon, it’s their first Super Bowl title)
Try: Learning about rain gardens at the upcoming “A Landscaping with RainGardens: The ABC’s of Design and Construction” workshop, taking place Feb. 16 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Registration fee: $50 (way cheaper than a ticket to the Super Bowl)

Instead of: Painting the town blue
Try: Painting your home with low-VOC or zero-VOC paint. (VOCs are volatile organic compounds and have been linked to health and environmental hazards.) Better yet, hire Green Brush Painters, a locally owned company, to do the work for you.

Until next NFL season arrives, we encourage you to team up for Planet Earth. Because nobody comes into our house and pushes us around.

Green Piece Indy has been named a finalist for an Indianapolis Sustainability Award for our Rush Hour Recycling program. The winner will be announced next Tuesday, February 9 at a downtown luncheon at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. Wish us luck!