Goodwill Big Bend Launches Donate Movement to Help Consumers Reduce Waste and Improve Communities
~ New “D” Icon on Donatable Items to Become Universal Symbol ~
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Hoping to spark a movement with huge environmental and social benefits, Goodwill Industries – Big Bend, Inc. is launching a local version of the national “Donate Movement”. This public awareness campaign is to emphasize the positive impact that donating clothing and other household goods can have on communities and the planet.
Along with the launch of the “Donate Movement,” Goodwill Big Bend is introducing a new “D” donation icon which represents responsible donating. The hope is that the symbol will become universally known for donating like the universal three arrow recycling symbol.
Goodwill estimates that the campaign could remove millions of pounds of clothing and textiles a year from the local landfill alone, while putting local residents to work and supporting Goodwill’s core mission of job training and affordable housing for people with disabilities.
Just as the recycling movement has produced huge environmental benefits by changing human behavior, Goodwill CEO Fred Shelfer predicts that the Donation campaign has the potential to have a huge, positive impact on the community.
“When you donate the items you no longer need to Goodwill, you are helping someone find a job, strengthening your community and preserving the planet,” said Shelfer. “Your donations also help the environment by allowing other people to repurpose the items so they can be diverted from landfills.”
Clothing items that are not appropriate to sell at Goodwill stores are bailed and sold in bulk. So stained shirts can be turned into bulk textiles and sold. And broken computers can either be repaired or sold, creating training opportunities and jobs, or recycled through Goodwill’s Dell Reconnect program.
So far this year alone, Goodwill donations prevented more than ten million pounds of usable goods from being thrown in the local landfill.
“Nationally, seven out of 10 consumers admit that, sometimes, they choose to discard their items rather than donate them. That’s why we need to education our community about the power their donation have,” Shelfer said. “By donating a computer, you can give a person 5.3 hours of career counseling. Or, one bike, one coat, and one DVD provide an hour of on-the-job training for a person.”
Donations can be made at any of Goodwill’s 39 locations or unattended donation bins. Visitors to donate.goodwill.org can find out the impact of their donation by using Goodwill’s Donation Impact Calculator.
To find out more information about the national Donate Movement and how donations can make an impact, visit: www.donate.goodwill.org.
Goodwill Industries-Big Bend, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit; Goodwill’s mission is to provide job training, education, and employment to people with disabilities and other barriers to employment, helping them reach their fullest potential in supporting themselves and their families. Goodwill also provides barrier-free apartment complexes in which people with disabilities can live independently.
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