According to johnsrefuse.com, Americans are creating so much trash that even the landfills, places we have set aside to put our trash, are filling up. While we are recycling upwards of 50 percent of our paper waste, we still generate between 250 and 400 million tons of garbage each year. Also, “the United States has the highest amount of waste generated per person of any country at an average of 4.6 pounds per day.”

People are trying to get a handle on their consumption and are using items like reusable grocery bags and water bottles to reduce waste. We’re making progress, but we can still do better. This means creating less waste, but it also means simply making sure that our trash makes it to the right places and that we aren’t littering.

It is estimated that close to 10 percent of waste ends up as litter, rather than in landfills or recycling plants. To help reduce this number, Volkswagen started an initiative called “The Fun Theory.” Simply put, by making the chore of throwing away garbage more entertaining, they encourage people to throw their trash away correctly — in trash cans.