Ed Newman, the Zero Waste director at Rural Action, has been promoting alternatives to the linear path of consumption and disposal of materials in waste since 1981, starting through grassroots organizing and then with the Athens City-County Health Department, where he helped develop Ohio’s first multi-material curbside recycling collection for the city of Athens.
Ed was the recycling and refuse manager for 22 years at Ohio University. He was board president of Athens-Hocking Recycling Center and is involved with several other local, regional and national organizations:
* The City of Athens Environment and Sustainability Commission
* Crime Solvers Anonymous Board Chair
* The West Side Community Association executive committee
* Buckeye SWANA ( Solid Waste Association of North America)
* RecycleMania board member and co-founder, a national intercollegiate recycling competition
Ed also is the bee inspector for Athens and Meigs counties and he is a brick collector and aspiring brick historian. He values community, a sense of place, and a healthy natural and human environment.
