The 10 Commandments of Zero Waste Rehoming

Actions and choices to better our planet and society

Amid all the chaos of our world, I’m still inspired by the ways that my team and I can be of service to our community, both here in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.

I started Next Highest Good Professional Organizing with a goal to uphold the highest environmental standards and model business practices that truly care for our communities and our Earth. And throughout my decade of daily practice and leadership, I have created the 10 Commandments of Zero Waste Rehoming as a guidepost for the daily choices and actions we can make to better our planet and society. 

1. Your Stuff is Good

I hate the idea of the haulers calling your stuff “junk”. That pisses me off. Just because you no longer want, need, or use it, why is it now junk? That is offensive. And rude. The fact of the matter is that one person’s trash is indeed another one's treasure. This is proven true time and again. In my work as a professional organizer, I am consistently surprised: the Instant Pot in need of a new fuse, the broken (!) laundry drying rack, the extremely stinky canvas tent… we have rehomed and upcycled all of these plus so so so much more. It takes extra effort and work but there are places and people who will take what on the surface may be and frequently is considered junk. 

2. Donate with Dignity

We all know you can donate your books, clothes, and household items *in good condition* to myriad places including big name places like Goodwill and Salvation Army. No problem. But what about the mildew smell on those books, the chipped ceramic plates, the worn-out clothing, not to mention the single socks, undies, and bras? Actually, it turns out, Goodwill does not want your broken toaster, so not all your stuff is good at all times. Hopefully it was before it wore out or broke. The point is this: be discerning.

Before dropping off your boxes of “donations”, please consider: would you offer it to someone whose opinion matters to you? There are plenty of other options if you have items that are not - in the condition they are currently in - good candidates for donation. 

Donating with dignity also means donating your good stuff in a timely fashion. Exactly nobody wants a base for a Christmas tree in January. Dropping off snow clothes, Halloween costumes/decor, school supplies, and other seasonal items in advance of that time of year will not only lighten the load on your local thrift stores, it will increase the chances your beloved goods will find a new home sooner than later.

Besides all that, donating with dignity has a deeper meaning. There are many organizations that work with previously unhoused people who have moved into a new home and are living out of trash bags and sleeping on the floor. Would you feel good about giving them your worn or broken cast-offs? You might, but wouldn't it feel much better to offer them a matching set of dishes free from chips and cracks? That way you fulfill their very real need for dishes but also the dignity that comes with a table set with matching plates and cutlery.   

3. Rehome It

Consider the language we see and hear so often around purging, decluttering, and organizing our homes and work spaces: “get rid of it”, “pitch it”, “dump it”, “junk it". Even “donate it” seems to have become a nebulous term that makes people feel better or not have to think about the choice they made in buying that thing - banana holder, anyone? - in the first place.

Take the concept of rehoming to heart like you would before you decide to get a pet. That is where you may have first heard the term "rehoming". Use this language in your process. When you think about rehoming goods that pays respect to these very items that you kept and used in your home or work space. Rehoming frames the way you think about your stuff – and about new items you may be considering bringing into your home. A few questions to consider:

• How is it packaged and what will I do with the box, bag, crate it arrives in?

• Will it need care?

• What will I do with the item when I no longer want, need or use it?

You don't just go out and pick up a dog, cat, bunny, hamster or snake on a whim. Well, most of us don't at least. You think about it, mull it over and consider the implications of inviting this new family member in. Where will they sleep, eat, how will they manage when I am not around to feed or walk them. 

Now I don’t mean to say that a lamp or shoe rack can be compared to a living thing but if you think about the impact that all our purchases have on our Earth…

Yes, you guessed it! The Earth is the ultimate living thing and if we keep taxing her at this pace, she is going to make life difficult, to say the least. Of course, it is not the same but you get the point:

• If we each consider the endgame *before* we make the purchase, we can start to see all the costs. The real cost of goods is the collective environmental impact of the manufacturing process and its pollution, labor conditions and wages, packaging, shipping, and disposal of many items that come from overseas. 

4. Don't be a Wishcycler

Recycling is bullshit, you say. And I say, you are right! The national recycling rate is... wait for it, a single digit, 6%. Eek! The rules are different everywhere you go. What do those numbers in the chasing arrows mean anyway? I hate to say it, but recycling is bullshit! But, do it anyway, please. Thank you.

Wishcycling is the disposal of consumer waste in a recycling bin in hopes of it being recycled when it cannot or is unlikely to be recycled. Wishcycling occurs because people are unfamiliar with what can be recycled or they want to believe that the items they put in the recycling bin can be made into something useful.

For now, recycling is the only thing we have got. You need to learn the rules where you live and share them in your community. If your municipality does not have it posted or easily accessible on their website, ask for it. If there is no response or unsatisfactory information, ask again.

The fact of the matter is, the higher quality their recycling product is, the better it is for your town or city. Meaning, that the more contaminants, non-recyclable products or mixed recyclable items you have, the less it is worth to the organizations that take our recycling.

Here is the point: know your rules and recycle what you can in your area. If it can't be recycled in your area, consider not buying it or moving (I am only half kidding, I would have trouble living in a place that did not have the robust recycling, composting and zero waste efforts our coop Recology does here in San Francisco. It is - seriously - one of the reasons I moved here.)

I’ve heard it said that the best recycling bin is an empty one. Even though it is BS, still we should do it. 

5. Normalize Secondhand

There is so much product out in the world already! Cool stuff, brand new goods, tags still on. Why pay retail? It is a win-win. Let’s normalize secondhand goods for all things like clothing, luxury items, home and sporting goods.

There is an inspiring movement among bigger retailers to make secondhand items normal and accessible. Brand names like Home Depot, Patagonia, Apple, lululemon, H&M, and many others are offering take-back programs. And if you are into luxury goods, you surely know about The RealReal and Chairish.

It is far from perfect but if you know what you want, you can get great stuff at a fraction of the retail price for items, right from your sofa, by perusing online consignment and thrift sites like ThredUp, Poshmark and Depop to name a few.

Have you ever been to clothing exchange or book swap? What a beautiful was to circulate goods and build community. More on this in an upcoming post.

The fact is we cannot get out of the environmental stress we are under in the same way we got into it. We need to rethink and reimagine framing things as “used”. 

 6. The Next Highest Good

When rehoming, think about and focus on the highest and best use for all the things you no longer want or need. Sure, the bottle caps and toilet paper tubes can go in the recycling bin (by this point, I am sure you have checked the guidelines in your area) but wouldn’t a better use be materials for 3D art at your local preschool or community center, saving them the expense of pristine goods and building community in the process? Ask yourself who would really appreciate this thing or which group could make great use of these items… today.

Time is a great guideline in rehoming items to their next highest good. You could donate the high end bicycle gear to your local thrift shop to get shelved and await their next owner but you know who would put that fancy stuff to use right away? The local bicycle club that supports new members who are gearing up.

And what about the layers of hypotheticals? We had one client say: “My daughter might want that crib for her baby if she has one.” I asked: “Is she planning to have a child soon? Will she want it if she does? Would you want to put your newborn baby grandchild into a crib that has been in your musty basement for 10 years?” That made her think. Too many ifs! I call it “layers of hypotheticals”. Do you find yourself stacking up the “ifs”?

A lot of us hold onto things because we might need it someday. But, the fact of the matter is, there are people who need that thing, uh, yesterday! Give it to someone who needs it now or at least can definitely use it sooner than “maybe” or “in a few years”. 

7. Think Globally, Act Locally and Support Your Community

There is so much value in taking things to the local level. You are able to support your direct community, form relationships with your neighbors or keep goods in a family. Freeing up space in your garage and getting to know your neighbors at the same time? Yes, please.

The top three platforms for rehoming locally are Next Door, Buy Nothing, and Facebook Marketplace. Outside of those, consider your affinity groups like places of worship, schools, after school programs, sports clubs and teams, community centers and colleges, etc.

By making connections locally, you can learn and then spread the word about your local thrift stores, creative reuse centers, salvage yards and other places to rehome items. 

8. Repair It

Did you know there are laws in place that protect manufacturers by preventing some goods from ever being repaired? For 15 years now, Repair Café has grown into a worldwide movement that strives to preserve repair skills in society and to promote more repairable products.

Besides the Netherlands, there are Repair Cafés in Belgium, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and dozens of other countries around the world including India and Japan.

Signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, the Right to Repair Act (SB 244) took effect on July 1, 2024, making California the third U.S. state, following New York and Minnesota, to enact legislation aimed at creating a marketplace for consumers to repair their electronics and appliances.

As of this writing, there are over 2,500 Repair Cafés worldwide. Visit one in your area or start one yourself - yet another way to foster community in your area. 

9. Return It

Yes, you can give things back. In fact, vendors love to have their items returned. It saves them money and time. Items like:

• Dry cleaner hangers

• Scuba and propane tanks

• Carpet and fabric samples

• Plastic berry baskets

Your returns save resources for Mama Earth and resources for small businesses.

Returns are not just from supplies. Keep an eye out for a future article featuring a heart-warming example in the form of the custom map of Chicago that made it back into the hands of the charity who created it, many many years earlier. Upon arrival they called it “pure gold” and sent it to a document preservationist.

10. Rent It

So often we only need something for a season or a trip. And so often we forget we can actually rent things instead of buying something we are not likely to use again or our kids will outgrow. Consider these rentals:

• Home Depot rents equipment

• Berkeley Public Library has a Tool Lending Library

• REI rents outdoor gear

• Sports Basement rent snow and camping gear down to socks and boots

• Uhaul has recycled moving totes/bins instead of boxes

You’ll save money and resources when you rent items only needed for a one-time project or adventure. 

There’s a lot of good, rich information here.

And you don’t have to do it all at once! Take small steps and do what feels attainable right now.

Have a bag of clothes you were planning to drop off at the Goodwill? Quickly jump on Facebook and list it as a free porch pick-up on Marketplace, or join your local Buy Nothing group. Getting ready to finally take the family camping? Rent or borrow what gear you can instead of going out and buying all new stuff you might never use again. Get stuff fixed or post it letting someone know they can get it fixed.

Rehoming our stuff is accessible and possible. You may have to work a bit for it, but it is worth it, right?! And with that, we can take small steps to better our local communities, our society and our planet.

Thank you for being a part of Next Highest Good, where we explore ways to resist overconsumption and create change through zero waste living. By tapping the heart icon or hitting the restack button you help this movement grow and it makes me do a happy dance.