This is Reuse
by Phoebe Schenker
Humans are storytellers. Passing information around is how we stay connected. But what makes a story go viral? Sometimes it has social capital (being in the know about something cool makes you seem cool) or practical value (news you can use!). Sometimes it’s triggered by our everyday actions. The 2024 Reuse Awareness Campaign checks all these boxes.
Since I started at Reuse Alliance, nearly a year ago now, I have talked with lots of different reuse practitioners - running thrift stores, refill shops, repair services, creative reuse centers - and they all say the same thing: “Supply is not the problem. Demand is the problem.” Meaning, we already have plenty of things in the world (I mean we make 23 billion pairs of shoes a year - just think about that in relation to the earth’s population). What we need is to get people to practice reuse - to buy used, to pay for repair, to practice refill, to rent instead of own.
Which should be easy! Because reuse is satisfying, social, economical, and good for the planet! If only people knew. Which is where the idea for an annual Reuse Awareness Campaign started: let’s put out lots of different catchy messages to shift the narrative and showcase the joy of reuse.
This is Refill. 2024 Reuse Alliance campaign imagery by TBD* design studio at CCA.
For the first campaign, I approached TBD* - the student design agency - at the California College of the Arts. Our application was accepted and we were assigned two student designers. The brief was to create a witty, optimistic campaign about reuse aimed at college students and young professionals. We would run it on social media and in print and use it as a tag to add to existing objects to highlight their reuse. This turned out to be a challenging brief, which Grace and Noah met head on. Unlike the reuse practitioners and reuse super fans I mostly work with, they first had to learn what reuse is - a project that ended up drawing in the whole class. As the instructor Rachel Berger said “I feel like I have reuse goggles on! I’m seeing reuse everywhere. I load the dishwasher at night, and I think ‘this is reuse’.” That sentiment became the campaign tagline: This is Reuse. We hope the campaign will call attention to the acts of reuse we already perform - and to the ways reuse brings so much that is positive into our lives. The goal is to inspire people to want to reuse more.
So let’s spread the word and make this campaign go viral! There are lots of ways to get involved - you can think ‘This is Reuse’ when you repair or refill, focus on that positive feeling, and look for ways to have that feeling more. You can download the media kit and join the #ThisisReuse campaign.
You can tell your friends (in person or order some postcards to send them!), and watch for upcoming events where we’ll be screen printing the campaign logo onto your existing things.
Most helpful of all, please donate to the campaign (we have a detailed strategy mapped out with digital campaigns, community events, and research, but we need funds to execute it). Every gift helps.
You know that feeling when you support a movement for good?
Have that feeling everyday.
This is Reuse.
This is Repair. 2024 Reuse Alliance campaign imagery by TBD* design studio at CCA.
Phoebe Schenker is the Executive Director of Reuse Alliance.
Upcoming Reuse Events + Opportunities
Plastic Free July
It’s here again! What do you have planned for Plastic Free July? Let us know! Or if you’re stumped, get some inspiration at the link below. Of course, practicing reuse is a great way to eliminate plastic from your life.
July 16 : Q3 Reuse Roundtable
Our third Reuse Roundtable of 2024 is coming up. We’ll be at the Advanced Energy Center in Downtown Santa Rosa and we’ll be talking about reuse marketing and promotion ideas generally (and specifically preparing reuse promotion activities for Zero Waste Week in October). This event is for Reuse Practitioners. There’s a suggested donation. Please RSVP at the link below.
Reuse in the News
We’re always so happy to see support (in the form of money) for reuse and bipartisanship too! Contact your senator and urge them to support the The Americas Trade and Investment Act to help move towards a circular textile economy.
Reuse really requires an ‘ecosystem’. Here’s one happening in Chicago.
Reuse to Amuse
It’s summer reading season. Do you have any good reuse book recommendations? This one is great for summer. Please send us your favorites - we’re working on a reading list for the our website!
We looked at a lot of ad campaigns this spring. Here are a few reuse favorites: Goodwill. Patagonia. and some funnies.
Word.
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