Even though they had sustainable intentions, one homeowner found themselves feeling conflicted after decluttering their home.
They sought advice from the subreddit r/minimalism. "I'm trying to downsize, but it's tough to find responsible ways to get rid of things," they explained. "Just throwing items out feels wasteful, donating takes a lot of time and isn't always easy, and selling has been hit-or-miss — especially with niche or low-demand items."
Commenters were empathetic; many of them had dealt with similar dilemmas. "I do donate a lot (clothes, books, etc.) and take advantage of my neighborhood's twice yearly bulk trash pickup, but honestly decluttering is such a struggle for me," one wrote.
🗣️ Should it be illegal to throw away old clothes?
🔘 Heck yes 👍
🔘 No way 👎
🔘 I'm not sure 🤷
🔘 Only if it's free to recycle them 🤌
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
Fortunately, many others chimed in with suggestions. One wrote, "I use my local buy nothing group and marketplace for free. There is always somebody who has a use for it."
Indeed, the growing Buy Nothing movement is focused on migrating away from overconsumption by creating a hyper-local gift economy. In these groups, which live both on Facebook and in the Buy Nothing app, neighbors can give away goods, services, and information for free.
"We believe that communities are more resilient, sustainable, equitable, and joyful when they have functional gift economies," Buy Nothing's website says.
Similarly, another Redditor suggested, "You could look up if there's any online or physical stores that sell used items in niche topics like games, antiques, crafting supplies etc. You could offer your stuff for them for free…That way your stuff will more likely find a new owner instead of going straight to landfill."
And when it comes to those hard-to-recycle items, another Redditor wrote, "There are also people in my city who collect and strip electronics and appliances to salvage materials and parts."
Taking the time to ensure that items are properly recycled — whether into the local community or at a salvage center — is well worth it. With the average American tossing five pounds of trash per day, the waste we generate adds up quickly and is a major contributor to planet-warming gases and harmful oceanic garbage.
Given that, many commenters said, the key is not to declutter responsibly…it's to not clutter in the first place.
One person summed it up: "The truth is that most things are future trash the moment you buy them. The focus should be on being very careful about buying in the future. That will make the biggest impact."
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