That's a picture of the bins full of stuff I recently gave away in the local Buy Nothing Project Group.

So what is the Buy Nothing Project?

It was started by a small community of people in Seattle who wanted to find a way to connect with people, spend less, and give things away instead of putting them in a landfill. The idea is that many of us live in abundance... We have more than we need. Others in our community may not have as much, and something sitting in my basement collecting dust might be of use to my neighbor down the street.

In each Buy Nothing Group, people list items they would like to "gift" to someone in the group. Gifts range from outgrown clothes and canned goods that are about to expire to high end items like Tory Burch bags and dining room sets. Additionally, if a member is in need of something, they will often ask the group if anyone has an item before they purchase it. When in-person school started up again and my son needed a pencil case, I asked the group... Several people commented with photos of pencil cases and my son picked the one he wanted. Saved me about $5 and helped someone else de-clutter a bit.

The Buy Nothing Project is hyper-local, with economic diversity taken into consideration when designating the boundaries for each group. Members are also asked to let their posts "simmer" so that people who aren't on Facebook as often have an opportunity to be considered. Many Facebook yard sale groups operate on a first come, first served basis, but the Buy Nothing Project encourages people to select recipients at their discretion regardless of when they commented.

A strong sense of community is built through participation in these groups as members gift their items to others, express their needs, and share gratitude posts about the impact received items have on them and their families.

If you are interested in joining a Buy Nothing Project Group, I recommend searching Facebook for "Buy Nothing" and then the name of your city or town. If you don't find one, you can visit BuyNothingProject.org for information on how to start one.

Dana McKay

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