What better New Year’s resolution than to get rid of some of last years’ gifts?

BY CLAIRE MOSER FOR GREENING OF OIL

After a holiday season full of new presents, what could be a better New Year’s resolution than to get rid of some of last years’ gifts?

If your family is anything like mine, you might be experiencing a buildup of cute junk that has no purpose but to sit on a shelf collecting dust. My mother once sent me two felt pop tarts. Yes. Small pillows made of felt, shaped like the yummy breakfast treat with pink felt frosting and little beaded sprinkles. 

Cute? Yes. But, really? However, it’s not entirely my mother’s fault. I have yet to touch my 7th grade collection of rubber ducks that sit lonely above my desk while I am away at college.

And in addition to all the stuff that has slowly accumulated, new holidays keep adding more. It’s finally time to get rid of it all … or at least some of it.

While it might be convenient to throw away those old clothes, appliances and toys, they will just end taking up space in a landfill. Governing bodies do their best to create well-engineered landfills planned to protect the environment, but many of the precautions set in place to keep us on the recycling straight and narrow path fail.

And even if landfills were perfect and we never had to deal with environmental nightmares, why send your Johnny Depp action figure the same place you send your garbage? There are better places available to you that are as convenient as a dumpster (well, almost).

Of course you can always donate to local charities or thrift shops, or re-gift with some fresh wrapping paper, but there are also more unconventional options out there.

Although I use eBay mostly to buy shoes that I can’t easily find in my size, it is surprisingly easy to sell those old presents to someone who wants them. There is a pleasantly frugal quality to selling stuff to people who actually want it—aside from avoiding a landfill—and at the same time increasing your funds for the next holiday season.

Half.com (an extension of eBay) focuses more specifically on buying and selling books, CDs and movies. Finally! A place where you can find a loving home for those CDs that just sit on your shelf looking longingly at your iPod Shuffle.

Between half.com and eBay, there is a place for everything and anything.

Internet’s landfill alternative

Throwplace.com, “The Internet’s Landfill Alternative” facilitates recycling by “throwing” or giving away items. The interaction is not just between individuals but also through businesses and charities. Items such as new t-shirts, a love seat sofa, cable modems, used DVDs and even an “elegant and adorable” Yorkie Terrier are “Up-for-Grabs” to anyone.

Registering as a business, an individual or a charity, “throwing” and “taking” are free (only a small fee is charged for taking from the individual-businesses section).

Additionally, a donor can specify who can “grab” their item if they want it to specifically go to a charity or a business. Esty.com artists are probably buying used and frayed sweaters right now.

What about the really old stuff?

After selling your collection of Beanie Babies and giving that old sofa to a charity, the New Year is starting off well. But what about those things that are just too old to give away?

You might be leaning toward the garbage can, but those old smelly sneakers can live on, in the form of a track, basketball court or playground. Nike Reuse-A-Shoe has collected 24,810,184 pairs of shoes since 1990 and using every part of the shoe, has recycled them into athletic surfaces all over the globe.

All U.S. Nike stores, including a number of other locations, will accept your old sneakers, no matter what brand or condition, so you don’t have to feel guilty about your new shiny shoes, knowing your old ones aren’t sitting in a landfill.

Moving back and forth across the country between semesters of college with suitcases and UPS shipments, I have decided that it is finally time to reduce what I have and recycle it. No matter what it is, there is almost definitely a place for it and someone who will want it.

Selling or giving away these items will allow you to conquer the clutter while giving to charity or making some extra money.

I am going to take my own advice: My New Year’s resolution is to recycle what I don’t need or use anymore and just simplify … starting with the felt pop tarts.

ABOUT CLAIRE MOSER

Originally from Los Angeles, Claire Moser is a junior Urban and Regional Studies major at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY concentrating on environmental issues and natural resources.

Moser does research on environmental policies and land tenure issues with two professors in the City and Regional Planning Department of the College of Architecture, Art and Planning. She spent last summer as an intern in Washington DC following the American Clean Energy and Security Act attending numerous federal hearings and reading the all 1300 pages of the bill (HR 2454). She is also a part of the Cornell University Program Board and the Cornell Concert Commission bringing great speakers and performers to campus. 

Claire is currently spending the spring semester of her junior year located in Trastevere, Rome studying the city and its green living.

Contact Claire Moser at claire.moser@gmail.com