The bigger they are...

The arse falls out of the Chinese recycling industry, causing hardship to millions and stalling one of the few large scale attempts to limit the damage we're doing.
Of course we should repair, re-use and recycle wherever possible - that should go without saying - but this stuff is travelling thousands of miles to seek out cheap labour, and is still inextricably tied in to high levels of consumption - which is, of course, why it's flagging now. This international trade is a short term fix. The real solutions surely lie in reduction of waste through reduction in consumption.

Reports indicate that a reduction in consumption is coming our way anyway, so perhaps we might like to consider doing something about it?