Category Archives: Environment

Community Action: 2024 Business Challenge Gallery Posted

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In Bend, we have the power to create a holistic sustainable community. More than just action around waste, it’s about access to affordable housing, supporting local farms and food production, prioritizing employee well-being, creating green-spaces and access for recreating and habitat in these, shifting status quo policies surrounding waste and distribute items for reuse, establishing safe routes for biking and walking… The 2024 Rubbish Renewed Business Challenge participants are making a difference through local, community focused practices, that empower people, and ultimately contribute to a better world. It’s more important than ever to step up and get involved.

That’s why we love the Rubbish Renewed Business Challenge! We get to highlight the sustainable work of local businesses who take community action. Link to 2024 Business Challenge Garment Gallery.

Pictured: Bend Anesthesiology Group “AETERNUM”, ReStore “AMPED-UP EVERYDAY HERO”, Lonza “SCIENCE WEATHERS THE STORM”, Humm “TIDE TOGETHER“

This year ReStore, Gear Fix, Lonza, Humm Kombucha, and Brave Collective returned to the competition and Bend Anesthesiology Group, Jackson’s Corner, and Oregon Adaptive Sports joined for their first Business Challenge. They came together to celebrate sustainability, support Realms education, and compete for the Coveted Trash Trophy.

Celebrate environmentally conscious businesses by experiencing the 2024 Business Challenge Garment Gallery through the diverse photos from Joe Kline, Kimberly Teichrow Photography, and Melissa Dholakia.

A Commitment to Educate: 2024 Adult Garment Gallery Posted

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A friend reminded me today, after taking a minute (or a month) to breathe, we need to get back to work. Each of us can make a difference by focusing action at the community level, on local legislation, and talking to people meeting them where they are.

Today I begin by highlighting the incredible trash fashion crafted by local Central Oregon adults. Creating trash fashion to showcase at the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show each year is a commitment to educate, inspire, and bring to the forefront the impact individuals can make to help the environment.

Check out the 2024 Adult Rubbish Renewed Garment Gallery of incredible trash fashion pieces and get inspired to take your own community action.

Rubbish Renewed 2024 had a diverse team of photographers. Thanks again to Kimberly Teichrow Photography, Joe Kline Photography, and Melissa Barnes Dholakia for the incredible images you’ll find in our galleries.

Rubbish Renewed-Trash Fashion video by Milan Anderson for The Obsidian

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This year we were lucky to have a young journalist, Milan Anderson, create a video piece on the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show for the Obsidian (the inaugural youth publication from the Future Journalists of America program). Milan, two-time winner of Bend Film’s Future Filmmaker Award and a 2024 Realms graduate off to film school, created this 7+ minute piece. Check it out, and see some trash fashion in motion, hear about our humble beginnings, and celebrate Bend’s talented youth.

Rubbish Renewed-Trash Fashion by Milan Anderson for The Obsidian

Thank You 2024 Rubbish Renewed Sponsors!

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The Pavilion indoor/outdoor environment was the perfect setting for the 12th Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show! The weather was flawless, the crowd energized, the vibe celebratory, and the runway stunning! Bendites perused the sustainable marketplace, local beverages and food, and most prominently interacted with re-envisioning rubbish both on and off the runway.

Together we celebrated the creativity of students from 14 local schools (our greatest participation ever), Central Oregon adults, and businesses on the runway. Together we created the best fundraising and eco-elevating event in Bend! We couldn’t have done it without our sponsors!

If you’ve been to the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show, you know it takes a village to produce. So many parts come together to create this spectacular, sustainably-minded event. Cash sponsors support infrastructure (like venue rental) and in-kind sponsors bring items (like beverages) and skills (like hair styling) that we couldn’t create on our own.

THANK YOU to each of our sponsors for supporting the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show make an impact on creativity and sustainable vision in our forward-thinking community.

Aeternum  Designers: Bend Anesthesiology Group
Model: Holly Graham  Materials: Sterile “blue” polypropylene (#5 plastic) wrap
Photographer: Joe Kline

These sponsors belief in our mission helped bring Central Oregon a creative, inspiring, and sustainable fundraiser once again! Together we raised almost $20,000 for REALMS Schools continuing the vision to foster scholarship, strengthen community, and inspire stewardship through active learning.

Thank you!

And the 2024 Business Challenge Winner is…

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It was a tight vote this year for the Business Challenge winner with 8 creative garments presented by 8 unique businesses (Restore, Gear Fix, Lonza, Humm, Brave, Jackson’s Corner, OAS, and Bend Anesthesiology Group) who take their sustainability seriously.

And the winner is Gear Fix taking home the 2024 Rubbish Renewed Coveted Trash Trophy for their 1st time in 4 competition. Congratulations Gear Fix! We hope you display this trophy prominently.

CAMP-TORIAN Designers: Nico Brilmyer, Kasey Boyd, Ethan Engemann Model: Avalon Disko Photo by: Melissa Barnes-Dholakia

More photos to come soon!

1 Day Away! Business Challenge Preview

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Excitement is building for the The Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show Business Challenge competition just 1 day away! 8 businesses dedicated to sustainable practices, are coming together to celebrate sustainability, support Realms education, and compete for the Coveted Trash Trophy!

Rob, of Trailers4Two, has created another beautiful, discarded-scrap-laminate Trash Trophy. One of the following Business Challenge participants will take the Coveted Trash Trophy home!

ReStore is competing in its 11th Business Challenge! That is every year (we didn’t have it year 1). At ReStore they must drink a lot of Yerba Mate, and with designer DeeDee Johnson’s incredible material manipulation it will be one unique piece. Gear Fix, back for their 4th Business Challenge, has a growing team of designers led by Nico Brilmyer and with that, a growing garment. This looks ready for the Met Gala!

Lonza, also back for their 4th Business Challenge. has repurposed their previous Business Challenge garments each year. This is its 4th reincarnation led by designer Kari D’Angona. Another returning businesses for their 3rd competition is Humm Kombucha who was back last year. Mother daughter team, Michelle Mitchell and Mae Plantenberg, create a patterned piece of plastic pallet wrap encased in outdated labels.

Brave Boutique, back in the Business Challenge with another Jen Ryker, bigger than life piece. As a boutique, packaging is the largest waste to deal with. Jen pulled out her power tools to create this armor. Although Jackson’s Corner has been involved in the past with Rubbish Renewed, this is their 1st Business Challenge! But designer Allison Murphy has had multiple designs in the Business Challenge over the years. Allison, one of the founders of Rubbish Renewed, is an outstanding designer and maker. We will all be blown away.

And joining this seasoned crew of Business Challenge participants for their first time are Oregon Adaptive Sports and Bend Anesthesiology Group! One of the few waste items OAS produces are single leftover gloves/mittens when one is lost, and popped bike tubes. Designer Martha Campbell meticulously quilted these gloves together to create this versatile jacket. Bend Anesthesiology Group is inspired to make an impact on hospital waste produced in the OR. They are currently exploring repurposing and recycling the large amount of blue polypropylene wrap going to the landfill. Their Business Challenge gown designed and created by a team of Anesthesiologists, RN’s and Radiology Techs, makes an impact on the environment and on the runway!

Bring your friends and your voting block to support your pick for the Coveted Trash Trophy!

Saturday May 11th at the Pavilion doors at 5:30pm! Get your tickets today!

Cosa Cura Supporting Community with Sustainable Style

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Since 2006 Cosa Cura has created an atmosphere of sustainable style, creativity, local support, and community service. A perfect companion for the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show. This unique business has partnered with Rubbish Renewed since our humble beginnings and is back for the second year of Presenting Sponsor!

Cosa Cura showing off Rubbish Renewed Trash Fashion from the past!

I’m not much of a current clothes shopper. Mostly because of *The Dark Side of Fast Fashion, but that’s not Cosa Cura. It’s my go-to spot to support local artists and purchase unique clothing pieces that will last and compliment my style!

Cosa Cura at Brookswood Meadow Plaza

As of this Spring, Cosa Cura now offers 2 locations supporting local artists and fashionistas with a locale to sell their designs alongside stylish reused fashion. This unique shop now bookends Bend, with one location in Northwest Crossing and the newly opened 2nd shop in Brookswood Meadow Plaza in Southwest Bend. The Plaza itself is worth a visit with a neighborhood atmosphere with local shops, services, and restaurants. Check out Cosa Cura’s new airy space and support local sustainably-minded, and community-supportive businesses!

*The Dark Side of Fast Fashion – “It dries up water sources and pollutes rivers and streams, while 85% of all textiles go to dumps each year...”

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9-Days Away! Celebrate an Array of Trash Textures

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Here is a sneak peak of the array of trash textures creating this year’s fashion on the runway in just 9 days! Designers re-envision refuse and sew, drape, fuse, weave, braid…to create the electrifying pieces for the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show making their statement for the environment. Get your tickets today!

The Walk Our Talk Zero Waste Event System

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Thanks to The Environmental Center ReThink Waste and their Community Innovation Grant, Rubbish Renewed is creating the Walk our Talk Zero Waste Event System! It provides a loanable service/sorting/waste reduction system including reusable service-ware, collection tubs, signage, educational materials, and guide to create and promote a successful low-zero waste event!

Last weekend at the Banff Film Festival on Tour at the Tower Theater we were able to try it out on a small scale. They used 3 sizes of cups in the bar and the bus tubs and signage to keep 100’s of disposables out of the landfill!

We will have the full system up and running at The Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show just 11 days away, on Saturday, May 11th. Get your Rubbish Renewed tickets today!

This system will be available to borrow starting Fall through our partnership with Bicycle Rides Northwest. This is a community effort to create access to reusables for more Central Oregonians!

Runway Submissions are Open

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It’s the designers, and their creativity, material manipulation, passion for fashion and our planet, that makes Rubbish Renewed unique, entertaining, and meaningful. Each year designers, like you, have made this one of the most coveted and exciting shows in Bend!

The Student and Adult Designer Submission Forms are up and will be open until the Garment Submission deadline at midnight on Friday, April 5th. For inspiration on the trash fashion creation process, student and adult designs, the runway show, the event, and our garment criteria, watch one or both of these short videos (3-4+ minutes – with some slightly different information):

Let us know what you are working on. We will highlight several designers again this year.  Spread the word and get designing! 

What will you Create?