In the outdoor world, many brands are incorporating recycled materials into both hard and soft goods, a trend that we here at Wend HQ applaud.  But in the case of recycled plastic bottles, or as it’s called in the industry, recycled PET, are we simply creating another commodities market that isn’t necessarily having and impact on virgin production? That’s a difficult question to answer when you look at the chain of custody from curbside recycle bins to finished products using recycled goods.  Basically, recycled plastic has become a global commodity and if you’re drinking a bottle of water from Fiji, then recycling it in Carlsbad where it gets baled and shipped to China isn’t really solving the carbon emission problem.  Recently I’ve become acquainted with writer, filmmaker and activist Lindsey Hoshaw and I came across this very cool video she produced that explains the recycling process, check it out.