Jodie Vanderslot | Staff Writer
Featured image: The Free Store run by Regenesis @ York is open every Wednesday between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. in HNES 109. | Cindy Long
Recycle, reduce, reuse. The business of collecting old pop cans, plastic water bottles and old papers is what comes to mind when we think of recycling, however the term extends much further than this. Recycling is the business of and for the future; it is an avenue that supports and breeds entrepreneurial options. Recycling is the process of making new uses of old products, whether that be passing the item down, re-purposing it or re-selling it.
Many clothing stores are incorporating this line of thinking into their wardrobes, including vintage stores such as Black Market Vintage. In 2013, H&M introduced their World Recycle Week campaign. Their goal was to collect used clothing from customers at H&M stores, keeping garments out of landfills and recycling them instead. The program has now been extended to run year-round.
While initiatives from larger companies promote the idea of a greener future, the dream often still feels out of reach, leaving us wondering: will millennials be the ones to make the change needed for a greener future?
Social media trading is gaining momentum, with an increase in accounts designed to sell gently used products, ranging from clothes to technology to furniture. Instagram stores like Depop and Storenvy allow users to post items from their wardrobes and sell them online to someone who will hopefully have more use for them.
The York community has also launched similar initiatives that encourage trading used items with others who may find better use for it. Free Store is the first of its kind at York, an initiative run and founded by the grassroots environmental organization Regenesis @ York. The goal is to reduce our ecological footprint—get rid of things you no longer need and maybe find some things you do.
What began as a pop-up store in 2013 can now be found inside the Health, Nursing and Environmental Studies Building in room 109. Shadiya Aidid, a graduate of the environmental studies program and communications and events director for Regenesis @ York, explains that the Free Store allows for perfectly good items to find a second life.
“It’s a space for the community to take and donate gently used items at no cost and is a way to reduce consumerism and introduce a sharing culture on our campus.”
The Free Store runs on Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Members of the York community are encouraged to take part in the initiative as both contributors and users. Students can drop off items that they no longer need or use at the Regenesis @ York office in room 349 in York Lanes on other weekdays.
“It is also highly accessible, as we do not ask for donations in order for people to take items, recognizing that people may not have something to offer in exchange and instead offer a three-item limit per visit. Students are able to benefit by receiving writing tools, textbooks, laptop cases [and] small electronics that have all been donated by their peers,” adds Aidid.
We only have one Earth, and with a growing population, our future depends on it. Each person adds a significant amount of waste to the planet over their lifetime, so it is everyone’s responsibility to make a change, whether that be creating your own trade business, donating your clothes or just participating in the already active initiatives that exist—and they’re closer than you think.
