We already know there are eco-friendly benefits of reducing food waste, which is a simple enough strategy to employ with strategic, smart planning. But what about the other items in your home that you may unnecessarily send to a landfill mainly because you simply weren't aware they could be recycled? The editors at Green America have not only composed a list of the 21 things you could (and should!) be recycling, they've also included the organizations you can contact to begin doing so.

See some of the items below and where you can recycle them, then hit the jump to visit Green America and view the entire list.

Appliances - Wondering what to do with your old stove or washing machine that is still in good working condition? Send them to Goodwill or the Steel Recycling Institute to recycle them.

Batteries - As soon as the ones in your remote control die, don't stick them in the back of drawer - you'll inevitably mistake them for good working ones at some point and they're likely to end up in the trash. You can send rechargeable and single-use batteries to Battery Solutions.

CDs/DVDs/Game Disks - Unfortunatley even your favorite video game or CD will end up scratched at some point in its well-loved life. AuralTech can refinish these damaged goods and have them working again as if they were new. This applies to your favorite music, Nintendo or Playstation games. 

Eyeglasses - Check with your local chapter of the Lion’s Club or the place you orginally bought your glasses. You won't just save them from a landfill, you may also benefit someone in need of new lenses when your old ones are recycled.

Miscellaneous - If your unwanted item doesn't fit into any specific category, try selling it or giving it away via sites such as Freecycle or Craigslist. You could also hold a garage sale and see if there's anyone else who can make good use of your cast-offs (hint: you can do this in any season).

Phones - Just like batteries, don't toss these (or your old pager or PDA) in a random cupboard or drawer for later disposal. Someone in a developing country may be able to use it and Collective Good will help make sure it gets there. You can also assist victims of domestic violence by participating in the Call to Protect initiative, which reprograms cell phones to dial 911.

Sports equipment - Take it to any sports-equipment swapping location, including Play It Again Sports or Sport Swap if you live in Canada.

Tennis shoes - Nike will turn your old shoes into a new place to play with their Reuse-a-Shoe program or if they can still be worn comfortably, One World Running will send them to people in need in poor countries.

Toothbrushes and razors - Who knew you could actually do something useful with your disposable razor or worn-out toothbrush? Instead of stuffing them in the trash can, stick it in an envelope (hint: remove the sharp part of the razor first!) and send it to Recycline. They'll convert this waste into plastic lumber. They've also partnered with Stonyfield Farm to recycle the company's old yogurt containers.

Anything else - If you can't think of where to send old products, you can always try sending back to the manufacturer with a little note letting them know they need to responsibly handle their old products.

The best feature of this list is that not only are you doing something good for the environment, in many cases you may be donating items to organizations that will find people who desperately need the things you no longer do.

» Co-op America

If you're patting yourself on the back for donating your old cell phone to charity and finding a seemingly better place for it than a junk drawer, it turns out your act may not be as charitable - or eco friendly - as you thought.

The charitable programs that take in old phones have expanded and many now accept other electronics including TVs, computers, MP3 players and digital cameras. Once the devices are received, a collection company pays the charity depending on the type of equipment and its condition. The amount can range anywhere from 25 cents to $300, however the average payment is about $3. Phones that are obsolete have any precious metals extracted and then the plastic is melted and recycled, which account for about 30 per cent of all donated phones. Any phones that still work and are in good condition are sold to refurbishing companies for a tidy profit. Unfortunately most of these phones are sold to retailers in other countries, where recycling facilities and guidelines for hazardous materials are non-existent. According to Trent Stamp, president of watchdog organization Charity Navigator, we are essentially dumping our unwanted crap on other places not equipped to handle it properly and the charities who are supposed to benefit from it all are lucky to receive any worthwhile compensation.

“The best you can hope for is that a couple of pennies on the back end actually reach your donation organization,” he said.

I can't decide which is the worse of two evils: the 98 million cell phones discarded in the U.S. in 2005. of which only 20 per cent were recycled or the transferring of these phones to countries where eventually the devices will likely end up in the same place about 80 per cent of American phones do: a landfill. It seems that instead of finding a legitimate solution for old cell phones, the inevitable is simply being prolonged, not resolved.

» MSNBC News