The Buy Nothing Project is a global conglomeration of community-based groups, founded in
Bainbridge Island, Washington
Bainbridge Island is a city and island in Kitsap County, Washington. It is located in Puget Sound. The population was 23,025 at the 2010 census and an estimated 25,298 in 2019, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County. ...
, in 2013, that encourages giving (or recycling) of consumer goods and services (called "gifts of self"
) in preference to conventional commerce. The stated aim of the Buy Nothing Project is to "set the scarcity model of our cash economy aside in favor of creatively and collaboratively sharing the abundance around us".
It began as a
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin ...
campaign and has built up local groups in the US and other countries, claiming over 4,000 volunteers.
Global and local impact
On a local level, each Buy Nothing Project group may contribute significantly to local waste prevention and waste reduction efforts, but the actual impact of local Buy Nothing Project groups has not been measured or surveyed.
The project website notes that because the map of groups was based on existing neighborhood boundaries, and those boundaries have been influenced by
socioeconomic differences and practices such as
redlining
In the United States, redlining is a Discrimination, discriminatory practice in which services (Financial services, financial and otherwise) are withheld from potential customers who reside in neighborhoods classified as "hazardous" to investm ...
, the map "began to align with unjust boundaries, including historic redlining, and this alignment amplified these injustices".
In the summer of 2020, the project went through an "equity overhaul" to diversify the local groups. The leader of one in Minneapolis, Minnesota said, "It's been hard to diversify our groups, because our groups reflect our neighborhoods and our neighborhoods are largely segregated in Minneapolis".
Organization and goals
The Buy Nothing Project encourages local communities to focus on improving the community in which they live
and keep groups small and local to minimise distance travelled to pick up items.
There is no overt criticism of
consumerism
Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the Industrial Revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to overproduction—the ...
, but the project's goals include saving money and reducing waste.
The projects' co-founders, Rebecca Rockefeller and Liesl Clark, say that it is not just
recycling
Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The Energy recycling, recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability t ...
: it is a way to fuel the
gift economy
A gift economy or gift culture is a system of exchange where valuables are not sold, but rather given without an explicit agreement for immediate or future rewards. Social norms and customs govern giving a gift in a gift culture; although there ...
and build community.
Members are expected to follow the rules and mission statement of the project,
although some groups and group leaders tailor the rules to better suit their local community of the type of project they wish to coordinate.
Membership is restricted to persons of
legal age as prescribed by the laws of each group's geographic location.
References
External links
Official website of Buy Nothing Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buy Nothing Project
Recycling organizations
DIY culture
Anti-consumerist groups