Keep reusable items out of the landfill - Get green with Local Reuse

When Kermit the Frog first sang, “It’s not easy being green“, he lamented the negative social implications of blending in with the world around him. In the end, however, he reckoned that being green like an ocean, a mountain, or a tree, is beautiful and it’s all he wants to be. Forty years later, those words read more like sage advice than an innocent preschooler’s song. After all, the survival of our species, and our planet, now depends on all of us being green, very green.

As it turns out, Kermit was singing the truth indeed. It really is hard being green. Especially because being green means making sacrifices and changing our living habits. We must burn less fossil fuel. Reduce our carbon footprint. Recycle our trash. And now iPhone and iPod touch users can do their part with Local Reuse, a wonderfully green iPhone app that seeks to reduce landfills by connecting reusable items with people who want them, before those items land in the dump.

The Landfill Problem
Landfills are a growing problem, one that is compounded by the unfortunate fact they are made up of millions of tons of reusable items, not trash. The EPA estimates that over 12.5 million tons of reusable items were sent to the landfills by US Citizens in 2006 alone. The problem grows every year, and not just in the US. It’s a worldwide epidemic of astounding proportions.

One of the most toxic and prolific types of reusable items piling up at the landfills is electronic equipment. Televisions, stereos, microwave ovens, computer equipment, cell phones, and yes, someday not far away, iPhones and iPod touches. You can find outlets nowadays that specialize in disposing of old electronic equipment, but if your item is still working, even just partially, you should use Local Reuse to see there is someone close to you that could put that item to good use. Even if you don’t find a match, at least you can feel good about trying.

An iPhone Solution
Current technology can be used to get reusable items into the hands of people that need them, and the large install base of the iPhone is a great way to reach out and make these connections. That’s why Manifest Interactive created Local Reuse, a free iPhone app that gives people a chance to either give something away, or look for something they need before sending it off to the landfill. Since it’s all done at a local level with involvement with individuals, universities and charitable organizations, Local Reuse brings this green service right into your own neighborhood.

Local Reuse connects to a database managed by Gigoit.org, which is basically the web version of the Local Reuse iPhone app. The database provides coverage worldwide, but users in more populated urban areas will have more success finding local connections. In our area, we can find hundreds of listings of reusable items, all free of charge, just waiting for somebody to make a claim. Most items in our area are indeed electronics and computer items, which is not surprising since we’re located in the heart of Silicon Valley.

To start with Reuse, you enter your your zip code in the app’s settings. You can expand or narrow your search by entering a radius in miles away from your zip code. After these are set, you will get a list of available items in your area. Each item is listed with a title, geographic location, category, description and optional images.

You can’t post items from the Local Reuse app, you’ll have to do that from your web browser by going to Gigoit.org. Oddly, the app doesn’t really tell you how to do that. In a future release of Local Reuse we’d like take a photo of an item with the iPhone and post it to Gigoit.org as a new listing. It also seems logical to utilize the iPhone 3G’s GPS to tag items and to search by current location. Despite these minor nits, Local Reuse is a great idea that will only get better as more people use it.

Get Local Reuse and Get Green
As owners of an iPhone or iPod touch, and as custodians of this planet, it’s our duty to download and use this application. It doesn’t take much effort to scan the items in your area from time to time to see if there’s something that you, or someone in your community, can put to good use.

Local Reuse and Gigoit.org are treading very noble paths. Please join them by donating and receiving reusable items in your neighborhoods to keep them out of landfills. Because, as they say, one person’s trash is another one’s treasure. At least it’s a little easier being green now, thanks to Local Reuse.

• Local Reuse - Free [app store]
• Gigoit.org - Free [web]

 

Share:
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Add a comment (One so far)