by Sassy Jones

Created on: May 29, 2009   Last Updated: May 31, 2009

Sometimes you know you need to get rid of something, but giving it to the Salvation Army or Goodwill, seems like a tenuous proposition. You know the company will take good care of it, but what about the person who decides to buy it? You want to make sure it goes to a good home. But how can you guarantee that? And how can you guarantee that the person you are giving it to, will take care of it, while preserving your personal privacy? The answer is simple: Freecycle.com.

Freecycle.com takes the best of several different ideas and combines them into an innovative resource, that is national in scope, yet local in nature. There are different Freecycles throughout the country based on geographic areas and population. There are two different aspects to Freecycle: what people are offering and what people are looking for.

Once an item is offered, an email is sent out. People who are interested in that item email the offerer. It is up to the offerer to choose who gets the item, completely. There are no rules on choosing who gets the item other than no money or goods can be exchanged. This is a free exchange. Because it is local, the options for transferring the items are more varied.

Another feature of Freecycle.com is people can post items they are looking for. It works in a similar way to the traditional offer, in that the 'wanted item', is posted and then sent out in emails. Then if someone has it and are willing to part with it, they respond directly to the person.

What makes Freecycle.com work so well is the community it engenders. It is rather like a farmer's market because you know that to be part of your specific Freecycle group, everyone is local. And by wanting to share with your neighbors and by them wanting to share with you, community is built. Plus, it keeps perfectly usable but unwanted items from going into the landfill. Because what you do not want, someone else does and vice versa.

Many bemoan the Internet as one of the reasons communities are not as strong as they used to be. But those behind Freecycle.com, chose not to be stymied by the seeming limitation of the solitary nature of the Internet. Instead, they use the uniqueness of the Internet, to show innovative ways to promote community, while preserving personal safety.

Freecycle.com does what on the surface appears impossible: building community while allowing anonymity. Safety and community in an uncertain world, while doing what is best for the environment. Plus, you get to decide who gets your beloved item, not some benevolent but faceless organization. What more can you ask?

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