Schenectady students helping city promote recycling on TV
Thursday, March 27, 2014
By Kathleen Moore (Contact)
Gazette Reporter  
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Photographer: Marc Schultz
Mayor Gary McCarthy and students from Lincoln Elementary School introduced a promotional video on Wednesday as part of an effort to increase recycling in Schenectady.SCHENECTADY — Students at Lincoln Elementary School soon will be making their television debut on a city advertisement.

They performed in an ad for recycling dubbed, “It starts with me.”

Each child held up two letters — M and E — at various notable locations throughout the city. As a narrator describes how much of an impact they could have on the environment and the city’s budget if they each recycled, they turned their Ms over to make the word “we.”

The ad ends with some encouraging data: If residents recycled 30 percent of their trash, up from 8 percent today, the city could save more than $350,000 a year in trash disposal fees.

Students were thrilled to play the main roles in the ad.

“The best part of doing the video was to get across the word that you can be that small but you can make a difference,” said Farana Saffie, 11. “You can make a real big difference.”

Mayor Gary McCarthy said the ad would be used for many initiatives, from recycling to paying taxes, by changing the narration.

“It’s really designed to be flexible. While we’re talking about recycling today, we could talk about many city issues,” he said.

He also urged the students to create their own ads.

“Maybe you could produce some of your own through YouTube and build off of what we have today,” he said.

The students who starred in the movie said they were enthusiastic about recycling, but some of them have a ways to go.

Saffie, a fifth-grader, said she recycled because “you can help our community and it’s really good for the environment.”

But at home, she said, she only recycles containers with deposits on them. She said she wished she had a big recycling bin to fill with used paper.

“That’s a thing we could recycle more … if there was a big recycling bin outside,” she said.

Residents can use virtually any container for recycling, but Commissioner of General Services Carl Olsen said he is considering asking corporations to donate used containers that would otherwise be thrown away.

His workers could put recycling decals on the containers and hand them out to interested residents.

“It’s very easy for them to participate,” Olsen said. “You only need two containers to recycle.”

City officials tried to marshal the students to get the word out.

“Truly, it starts with all of you, to remind your parents that it’s your future they’re enhancing” by recycling, said Councilwoman Leesa Perazzo.

McCarthy said the students can help remind their parents to make time to recycle.

“The kids here get it, they understand it, but the parents don’t and they forget,” he said. “We’re going to draw on the enthusiasm of these students to re-energize the community.”

Your right "It start's with you" Mayor McThug for raising property taxes and fees. Oh! and for giving away our hard earned tax dollars to the rich downtown cronie friends of yours Mayor McThug!
It never stops with this McThug exploiting children as political pawns to promote his FAILED policies. The other day he did the same thing with the naive UNION College students to promote his FAILED H.O.M.E.S Program.The fact is Schenectady is filled with renters scumbags who can't even stand the smell of their own garbage let alone recycle. STOP KIDDING YOURSELF MCTHUG YOU WON'T GET ANYWERE WITH THIS PLOY JUST LIKE ALL YOUR OTHER FAILED POLICIES!

they haven't corrected the city gypsy issue....

The mayor REFUSES to enforce the recycling in the city    Whines about the lost money, spent tax money to have 247 stupid recycle show on King Philips TV station, it did nothing to help.

So instead of going after the people who are too dang lazy, he prefers to take away time from math and reading and exploit the kids.

The dems decide to be dictators and invent a certain size for house numbers then waste tax dollars going after homeowners who have perfectly good numbers on their houses and charge them with violations of the law, but the mayor REFUSES to cite the people who are ignoring the recycling rules.

The dems running this city have no clue how to run a city nor how to serve the taxpayers.

Another thing to throw out at you.......

I think the 8% number is a little skewed.  Out 8% recycling rate is not like the 8% in other municipalities like Saratoga or Ballston Spa where they dont accept certain things in the garbage like couches, beds and rugs.  Take the couches and beds and rugs out and the tonage that goes into the denominator goes down and the 8% might be 15 or 25%.  

The other thing is that the garbage men beat the sh1t out of the cans, throw out lids and rip them right off.  Some would say it is off topic but it isnt because when the garbage can is damaged especially the top then the garbage gets wet from rain and snow. That issue increases tonage.  We would reduce the tonage significantly by keeping the garbage dryer.  On that note, a couch bed and rug can hold alot of water. Schenectady picks these items up and it hurts our recycling numbers.  

If we had the financials you would see that even 100% recycling would probably cost us more money due to the additional staff pay and benefiuts and the other operational costs and machinery.  

In the end I would bet my life that the county is making a boatload off of the city with its waste.  Where are all the appliances going......

Quoted from TakingItBack

Where are all the appliances going......

rumor has it any the city picked up went to carlls next door neighbors buissness since iv'e been in the city  

edited to add "given for free" that way the city avoided haveing to pay for freon evac  and other enviromental issues etc...

Quoted from sanfordy2

rumor has it any the city picked up went to carlls next door neighbors buissness since iv'e been in the city  

I think if there was a place for someone to go sniffing around this is the place to do it.  I find it amazing that the Scrap Income column of the City Financials only has less than a couple thousand of dollars in it every year.  

Either we are giving them to the city employees to scrap themselves or they are giving them to the county for free.  Either way it is theft!

Quoted from TakingItBack

I think if there was a place for someone to go sniffing around this is the place to do it.  I find it amazing that the Scrap Income column of the City Financials only has less than a couple thousand of dollars in it every year.  

Either we are giving them to the city employees to scrap themselves or they are giving them to the county for free.  Either way it is theft!

you are 100% correct...

Quoted from sanfordy2

you are 100% correct...

I wouldnt doubt it.  It needs to be stopped.  They can increase the income without any changes in operations.  Stop the fraud.

Great idea -- getting the children involved in these positive ads.  Helps them feel connected more connected to their community.  We have a great bunch of children in the City School District of Schenectady -- they are a tremendous resource and they are our future.   Kudos to the Mayor for building partnerships with the schools. This is a real win-win-win situation for everyone.

McCarthy was just trying to look around the school to see who was smoking a 'loosie'.

And he was going to issue violations to the elementary kids for their lunch money until he realized they get free lunches.

Awww. Maybe next year McCheesy.....

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

Great idea -- getting the children involved in these positive ads.  Helps them feel connected more connected to their community.  We have a great bunch of children in the City School District of Schenectady -- they are a tremendous resource and they are our future.   Kudos to the Mayor for building partnerships with the schools. This is a real win-win-win situation for everyone.

You not NOTHING about children and the future.  Your not a dad.   You won't even have a loving child to take care of you in your old age.

The city has rules, law, codes, which mandate recycling and it's time the mayor enforce the rules.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

Great idea -- getting the children involved in these positive ads.  Helps them feel connected more connected to their community.  We have a great bunch of children in the City School District of Schenectady -- they are a tremendous resource and they are our future.   Kudos to the Mayor for building partnerships with the schools. This is a real win-win-win situation for everyone.

Wonder if they recycle the bumpers that they cut off from the garbage trucks after they get into an accident.  Notice how many bumpers dont exist on many of the city vehicles, especially the garbage trucks.

Quoted from TakingItBack

Wonder if they recycle the bumpers that they cut off from the garbage trucks after they get into an accident.  Notice how many bumpers dont exist on many of the city vehicles, especially the garbage trucks.

They should use nayboob skulls for recycling containers -- since they are already empty.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

They should use nayboob skulls for recycling containers -- since they are already empty.

Wonder if they recycle the bumpers that they cut off from the garbage trucks after they get into an accident.  Notice how many bumpers dont exist on many of the city vehicles, especially the garbage trucks.