The NYC Department of Sanitation Is Doing Something About Your Old Clothes

The new campaign aims to reduce the amount of clothing that ends up in landfills by offering an online map that will direct people to over 1,100 locations around the city where they can drop off clothing no longer wanted. (Something that will hopefully save you from dumping them outside your apartment building and offer more options than humiliating Buffalo Exchange trips!)

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Today sees the launch of #WearNext in #NewYorkCity – a collaboration by #MakeFashionCircular, brands, recyclers, collectors, New York City Department of Sanitation and New York City Economic Development Corporation to stop used clothing being thrown away and landfilled.⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ An online map created by New York City Department of Sanitation will guide people to more than 1,100 locations across the city where they can take clothes they no longer wear.⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ Make Fashion Circular lead Francois Souchet said: “As customers, we know where we buy our clothes and we know where we have worn them, but #WearNext is about the next stage of that journey – where do our clothes go when we have finished with them? We believe clothes should never be trash. By bringing together these brands, along with the City of New York and recyclers, we have an opportunity to ensure New Yorkers can find a new life for their clothing. It is an important step, but we also need to recognise that customers alone cannot fix the fashion industry’s waste and pollution problems. We need the industry to work together to create a system where where clothes are made from safe and renewable materials, new business models increase their use, and used clothes are turned into new ones.”⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ Get involved by donating, repairing, reselling or swapping your old clothes to give them a new life and share their stories using the hashtag #WearNext⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ Find your nearest New York City Collection point by visiting https://tiny.cc/wearnext⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ [Photo by Anthony Cotsifas @AnthonyCotsifas]⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #NYC #fashion #circularfashion #clothesnotwaste #circulareconomy #sustainablefashion #lovedclotheslast #fashion #style #newyork #newyorkfashion #fashionista #newyorklife #newyorkstyle #circularfashion #circulareconomyfashion #zerowastefashion #fashionlover #businessoffashion #fashionnewyork #newyorknewyork #futureoffashion #fashiongram #nowastefashion #ig_fashion

A post shared by Make Fashion Circular (@make_fashion_circular) on Mar 4, 2019 at 7:35am PST

Running through June 12, the campaign will try to reduce the 200 million pounds of clothing that New York City dumps in landfills each year.

Make Fashion Circular, a spinoff of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, wants to reduce fashion waste by advocating for products that can be used in their entirety, from first wear to reuse. Locations on the New York City map include clothing stores, recycling centers, and thrift shops, and it’s apparently the first comprehensive map of its kind. There will be ads, as well, at bus stops and LinkNYC boards for the map.

The campaign will also encourage participants to tell their stories of reusing, reselling, or swapping old clothes on social media using the #WearNext hashtag. Brands like ASOS, H&M, Reformation, Zara, and more are also supporting the initiative. Learn more about the Make Fashion Circular project here.