[0:03] Hi, my name is Violet Penman. I'm the [0:05] solid waste and recycling coordinator [0:07] for the cities of Rosemount, Hastings, [0:09] and Farmington. And this is an example [0:11] of one of the events that I do. My job [0:14] is to help reduce waste and increase [0:17] recycling and reuse within the cities of [0:20] Rose Mount Hastings in Farmington. We do [0:22] that by providing different recycling [0:25] events throughout the year like our [0:26] mattress and box spring drop off and [0:28] document shred event cleanup days, [0:31] swaps, and resident education. A typical [0:35] day for me can really vary depending on [0:37] the time of year um and what I'm doing [0:40] at that point during the year. So, I [0:42] spend a lot of time preparing for [0:45] different events throughout the year [0:46] like swaps and cleanups. During the [0:49] holiday season, I spend a lot of time [0:51] collecting holiday lights from residents [0:54] to then go to recycling. During the [0:56] summer, I spend a lot of time at events [0:59] such as party in the park and [1:01] Farmington, leprechaun days at Rose [1:04] Mounts, National Night Out in Hastings, [1:06] among other sort of educational [1:09] opportunities. It really depends on the [1:11] day what I'm doing. Swaps are my [1:13] favorite events. They are events where [1:15] people can bring items that they don't [1:17] want anymore and people can find and [1:20] take items that other have placed on the [1:22] tables and take them home for [1:23] themselves. It's super fun to see [1:26] everyone come into a swap. Kids [1:28] especially grow out of so fast and I've [1:32] had people before that have tried to pay [1:34] me desperately for items and it's super [1:37] great to be able to say no it's totally [1:38] free. Your neighbors didn't want this [1:40] anymore so you can have it now. We do a [1:44] Halloween costume swap, a sports [1:46] equipment swap, and an outdoor winter [1:48] clothing swap. It would just be going in [1:50] the landfill otherwise. So, it's nice to [1:52] see people take these items and create [1:54] that culture of reuse. Each city in the [1:58] in Dakota County is responsible for [2:00] meeting the state requirements related [2:02] to waste reduction, reuse, and recycling [2:04] activities. Then in 2022, the city of [2:08] Rosemont, Hastings, and Farmington took [2:10] an important step towards local [2:11] sustainability. We came together and [2:14] welcomed Violet as our new solid waste [2:16] and recycling coordinator. I think that [2:18] this program is actually a benefit for [2:20] all residents just because of the [2:22] community engagement and the education [2:24] that is providing. [2:26] >> A couple of our events coming up is in [2:28] middle of November, November 17th. This [2:30] is the start of our holiday light [2:32] collection. residents can drop off their [2:34] older unwanted string lights. I take [2:36] them, I sort through them, bring them to [2:38] the recycling zone so that that metal [2:40] can be recycled back into usable [2:42] objects. I am officed out of the city of [2:45] Rosemont, city hall. It works easier for [2:48] me to be in Rosemont where I can have [2:50] one computer and then I commute to [2:52] Houston and Farmington on an as needed [2:54] basis. There's a lot of great things [2:57] about working with three cities and [2:58] there's a lot of difficulties about [3:00] working with three cities, but I like [3:02] it.