There are 250 million people around the world who do not have access or cannot afford basic eye-care and, by recycling your old reading glasses; you’re helping to make a difference. Visio Optical runs a spectacle collection programme to ensure that spectacles are made available to the needy.

Most of us have a spare mobile phone lying discarded under the bed or in the kitchen drawer. Rather than let it build up dust, or throw it into the bin where it will end up in landfill, take it to your nearest recycling centre. Wanna may a few bucks out of it? Take it to a cash converters.

Another common household object that cannot be readily recycled is a battery. They contain a number of toxic elements, including nickel, alkaline, mercury and lead acid, all of which are potentially damaging to the environment if not discarded properly. Batteries that end up in landfill leak into the ground and put animals and humans at risk. Find your nearest e-waste centre here to dispose of batteries responsibly.

Contact the manufacturer or retailer of your old television sets. Sometimes you can drop off your items to be recycled, sometimes you’ll have to pay a small fee, and other times they’ll even pay you to hand over the electronics you no longer need. You can also look for e-recycling events happening in your community. This applies to laptops, DVD players and only electronics too.

Think of the plastic packaging that your latest cosmetic purchase came in, the plastic film on your pre-cut veggies or your post-pop bubble wrap. All of these can be recycled too! Don’t simply toss them in the trash.

Many aerosol cans—including disinfectant, hairspray and shaving cream—can be recycled for their steel or aluminum, as long as they’re totally empty.

As long as it’s free of food residue, you can throw your used aluminum foil in the recycling, or better yet, just reuse it!

If you aren’t re-filling your cartridges and are ready to get rid of them entirely, check with your local office supply store, which may offer you rewards points or discounts in exchange for your cartridges.

Try to find a recycling bin for your empty bubble tea cup instead of tossing it in the trash next time, and remember that plastic drinking straws are made of recyclable too so don’t just dump them without thinking.

These are recyclable since they’re simply cardboard, but many of us toss these in the garbage can like it’s no big deal. If you’re not saving them for crafts, carry that empty roll to your recycling bin.

(Text: bauersyndication.com.au / Additional reporting: Natalya Molok)