Get the goods: Freecycle

Want free stuff? Wouldn’t it be great if you needed a TV or a lounge or an exercise bike, and it just so happened your neighbour was giving one away? Wake up - it exists and it’s called Freecycle.

The Squeeze: In 2007 Yahoo ranked ‘Freecycle’ as the third most searched environmental term worldwide, following ‘global warming’ and ‘recycling’. 

Freecycle is proof that one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. But it is more than a place to get free stuff: it is an online community of people who connect with others in their local area to give (and receive) stuff they would otherwise throw away.

A private, non-profit organisation run by thousands of volunteers, Freecycle has thousands of gifting groups and millions of members worldwide. Over 25,000 items are given away each day, extending the life of products and keeping them out of landfill. It also saves money and prevents new products being manufactured using scarce and polluting resources.

Living Lime: Freecycle was started in 2003 when Deron Beal had a bed no op-shop or friend wanted, so he started an online ‘gifting group’ among 30 of his friends. 

To squeeze some more green out of your day: Can’t find what you’re after? Check out another gifting siteZiilch.

By Anna Minns

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