The Freecycle Network

Canadians from coast to coast embraced Freecycle as a way to reduce garbage and increase reuse during the Freecycle Challenge. Waste Management and Freecycle launched the Challenge in September, encouraging members to increase the level of goods being exchanged in each community in the weeks leading up to Waste Reduction Week.

Participating communities registered the number of transactions posted for the week of September 5-11, then again during the week of October 3-9, with the communities with the highest percentage increases being awarded as winners. Those communities are: Cowichan Lake, B.C.; Sherwood Park, Alberta; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Midland, Ontario; Rawdon, Québec; Bathurst, New Brunswick, and Hants County, Nova Scotia.
Freecycle provides individuals, schools, and businesses with another way to dispose of items no longer needed. It's a great way to practice what is often the most difficult of the 3Rs - reuse. Freecycle proves the old adage that one person's trash is another's treasure. Members can give away items they no longer need and pick up others' discarded items - all for free, and all over the internet.

Waste Management is proud to be the first corporate sponsor of The Freecycle Network. WM's sponsorship is helping Freecycle to improve its online presence at www.freecycle.org. With more than 250 Freecycle groups across Canada, there's probably one in your own community. If there's not, it's easy to establish a new group - the website provides step-by-step instructions to get you started. WM's sponsorship is also aimed educating customer, employees and the public about Freecycle and how it can help reduce waste generated. As part of these efforts, WM brought Freecycle founder and executive director Deron Beal to Canada during this year's Waste Reduction Week to meet with local Freecycle moderators, government officials and media.

For more information on The Freecycle Network and how to use it to reduce your waste and recycle unwanted goods, please visit www.freecycle.org.