You may remember the Wombles as famous children's TV characters that "made good use of the things that we find." Now the Furniture Reuse Network has secured the rights to use the Womble name to run a national day focused on re-use. The Big Womble will be a national fundraiser for the FRN and its network, to be held on the 29th October 2008 at Wimbledon College. There will also be local events and a national raffle, as well as a ticket only event for an auction of celebrity household items. The FRN will be using this as an opportunity to raise money and awareness about reuse in the UK, and if successful, it will be made into an annual event. If anyone attends any of the events I would love to hear about what went on.

I would also be interested in readers views about the following article I read recently about plans to reward households that recycle.

"Households will be rewarded by a Conservative government for recycling waste with vouchers worth up to £360 a year, the shadow chancellor, George Osborne said. In a speech to the Green Alliance sustainable development body, Osborne will outline plans to bring to the UK an American recycling scheme that would reward people for recycling. Recycle Bank works with over 500 cities and community groups in America, reducing the amount local government pays in landfill tax by rewarding households for recycling. Some of the money saved goes back to the household in points notched up on a electronic card which can then be redeemed at local stores, and is worth on average $50 a month, according to the Conservatives.

Osborne said: "The government's approach is an old-fashioned one: use the threat of fines and punitive taxation to force people to recycle. We've all seen how unpopular this heavy-handed approach has been with the public. Instead of using sticks we can use carrots. There is also an equity dimension. While the poorest households were previously the least likely to recycle, as soon as they started receiving a financial incentive for recycling [in the US], they typically become amongst the most likely to recycle"

I promised in my first blog I wouldn't get too political, but I think anything that prevents rubbish being put into landfill is positive, so over to you for your thoughts.