Whether it is paper discarded after one use, bananas we are afraid have gone bad, or old clothing we can’t bring ourselves to wear, waste is entrenched in our daily lives. However, we don’t have to think of these items as "waste." Through live events and online posts, the Palisades Branch Library teens will encourage the community to rethink these events as resources for a delicious meal, fun activities with family, and more. Along the way, we hope that everyone will be more conscious about how and what they are using.

After two years on Zoom, we teens at the Palisades Branch Library also felt it was important to integrate the surrounding library community with many live events to create the most personal impact on how to reduce and rethink waste.

For the holidays, we have already conducted two events. The first was using recycled paper to teach kids how to make snowflakes. These snowflakes were later used to decorate the library!

The second event was a gift swap. Using the community room, we teens set up tables to allow visitors to drop off gently used items into designated categories. People were also free to walk in to do personal and holiday shopping with the items on the tables. All leftover items were later donated to Sojourn, a women’s service organization.

As this project progresses, the teens plan to rethink more types of "waste" into resources. This includes recipes for unused parts of fruits and vegetables, excess office supplies, and plastic bags.

—Written by Fiona

Fiona is the 2022-2023 President of the Palisades Library Teen Council Board and a Senior at Palisades Charter High School.

—Ziba Pérez, Young Adult Librarian, Palisades Branch Library

The Teens Leading Change initiative has funded and launched 39 projects across 50 branches, including 4 projects across 7 branches that are happening now!