In this series, Know Disney?, blogger Kendall Foreman introduces readers to aspects of the Walt Disney Company®, its films, history, and parks, which perhaps are heretofore unknown to the reader.
Do you appreciate the complimentary toiletries in your Walt Disney World® resort room each time you stay on property? Do you use them while there or take them with you at the end of your stay? If you knew what happens with the leftover bars of soap, you might decide to leave yours behind.
Over the past several years, resorts owned by Disney in Florida, California and Hawaii have partnered with Clean the World Foundation, Inc. to recycle soap and other toiletries. Founded in 2009, Clean the World works with over 2,000 hospitality partners across the country to train hospitality staff in collecting toiletries, which are then transported to a Clean the World recycling facility. There, the collected items undergo a rigorous sanitation process, which has been tested and certified for safety. Once the soap has been sterilized, it is ground into pellets and pressed into new bars which are placed on pallets for distribution.
According to its website, Clean the World has been able to distribute over 17 million bars of recycled soap to families both domestic and international. These bars of soap are given out with disaster relief supplies, placed in homeless and domestic abuse shelters and distributed as part of hygiene kits to countries desperately in need. Studies show that the simple act of hand washing can prevent a number of diseases, especially in children.
Clean the World is not only supplying a much needed end-product, its efforts are also driven by environmental consciousness. The foundation reports that the program has reclaimed 5 million pounds of waste in the past five years. According to a report by the Disney Parks Blog, in just the first two years of their partnership, Disney collected almost 87 tons of hotel waste.
So, the next time you are packing up at the end of your stay in a Walt Disney World® resort, think about leaving those toiletries behind. What is more, if you have a partially used bar leftover in the soap dish or shower, do not throw it in the trash because it can also be renewed and utilized. Your decision to leave those unused as well as used soap bars and toiletries behind will help Disney make a difference.
(Photo from the author’s personal collection.)
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Kendall began visiting Walt Disney World in 1991 with her family and has continued to visit the resort with her husband. As a child, she and her family filled vacations with challenges such as “How many times can we ride Splash Mountain during SpectroMagic and the fireworks?” (Answer: 7) Now, after marrying a converted Disney skeptic, she and her husband enjoy challenges such as “How many hours can we eat nonstop at the Food & Wine Festival?” (Answer: 4)
The post Know Disney? — Cleaning Up appeared first on WDW Radio - Your Walt Disney World Information Station by Lou Mongello.