– Get plants for free. Check Craig’s list (www.craigslist.com), Freecycle (www.freecycle.org), and your local gardening club for trades and giveaways. Gardening enthusiasts are always dividing plants and not knowing what to do with extras. You can often get good sized bushes for free from landscapers, too: They are always digging out something their customers don’t want so they can plant what they do. You can take the old plants off their hands.
Those who aren’t near a recycling facility might consider giving their old mattress away. But many health departments prohibit donating mattresses to charities like the Salvation Army or Goodwill. So what’s an upgraded sleeper with a perfectly good old mattress to do? The web-based Freecycle Network allows people to post stuff to give away to anyone willing to come pick it up; likewise, chances are your local version of Craigslist also has a “free” section where you can post that it as available.
6.
Fix things. Mend clothing, repair the vacuum, fix the car—instead of replacing them. Or give them away on Freecycle.org.
Have you considered giving it to someone who will use it? Freecycle can help you find the perfect home for your baby’s outgrown treasures. Freecycle keeps gently used items from filling up landfills (or your already packed to maximum capacity closet). You list your item, people who are interested contact you directly and come to pick it up from you. It’s a really simple process!
New York, NY, May 21, 2009 –(PR.com)– The Vyouz Network have now completed their latest upgrade and platform developments which will enhance and accelerate reuse and recycling.
Existing freecyclers and other free use organizations can now use the system to promote and encourage other members of the public to share their unwanted belongings and load them up onto the internet for others to use.
People from many other organizations are joining free to use websites to enhance their ability to reuse as a way of life.
If you don’t know what Freecycle.org is, you should - regardless of whether or not you need cartons. The ‘freecycle’ network is a non-profit, grassroots exchange program operated entirely by volunteers for people who are into giving and getting stuff for free in their own towns. The goal is reduce waste and keep it out of landfills. It’s a fantastic collaborative effort using the Yahoo group network to connect concerned citizens.
2. Don’t just recycle. Freecycle!
The problem: Junk, junk, junk everywhere. And nowhere to put it but the landfill.
The solution: A communal approach that shows that one household’s junk is another’s salvation.
The “How-to” from Gurwitch: “The concept of ‘freecycling’ has exploded in recent years, especially with the website freecycle.org. You go there and type in where you live and what you need to get rid of — it could be a baby crib you no longer need or a set of old golf clubs. Once you’ve posted the availability of items, you could get dozens of responses from people near you who need them. Then, you put it on your curb and it’s gone! I worked with one woman who had a ceiling fan and aquarium to get rid of. She was ready to pay for a salvage company to pick them up. I steered her toward freecycling instead, and she got 20 responses in one day. And she was able to get baby clothes that she needed from a mom whose child had outgrown them. I have gotten rid of our child’s crayons and magic markers doing this — someone had a day-care business and needed them.”
Need not, spend not (and by default: waste not). Buying less and wasting less is the easiest, cheapest way to show concern for the environment. When we do have a need, perhaps a set of jeans or a microwave, why not see if someone already has what you need for free in your community? It’s easy, thanks to freecycle.org, craigslist.org and a growing number of local gift or barter exchanges. What’s in common with all these forms is a transfer to goods (and in some cases services) without the use of money. Individual self-interest is trumped by community interest. So let’s start taking care of our community.
FREE ONLINE TRADING POST
This isn’t your grandma’s recycling. Freecycle is a worldwide effort to promote recycling giveaways from one person to the next. There’s a Bloomington group site on Yahoo! that posts about 200 items each week. Think local eBay , but free. Sign up for a daily newsletter to fi nd out what people want and what they’re giving away. The mission of the program, according to the site, is, “A perfect consumer/earth friendly circle with no overhead, no money, no waste, and no catch.”
Join the group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BBINFreecycle/
2.Freecycle: The above is sure to stir up some goodies that can be useful to those around us: clothes, books, electronics, furniture, etc.
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