According to the World Resources Institute, discarded, non-biodegradable materials can sit in landfills for up to 200 years, becoming waste that negatively impacts the environment.
While it may be easier to throw away rather than donate, giving your items a second life can have tremendous positive impacts on the amount of waste we produce as humans. The “produce-consume-dispose” cycle in which we are conditioned to accept is not a sustainable way to get rid of no-longer-needed items.
To celebrate Earth Day and break the cycle of disposal, Goodwill of North Georgia is hosting an Earth Day Donation Drive April 3rd – 22nd, offering a $500 prize to one donor each week until the drive ends.
Last year, Goodwill helped divert over 44 million pounds from getting tossed into landfills and aims to increase that statistic through initiatives such as the Earth Day Donation Drive.
By encouraging more people to donate rather than throwing away, the nonprofit is helping the planet, helping fuel its mission to put people to work, and helping you make space for something new.
With 69 stores and 46 attended donation centers across the North Georgia region, Goodwill has no shortage of locations to drop off items such as kitchen wares, furniture, jewelry, electronics, and clothing. Those donations are then sold, and the profits are used to provide free job training and placement services to North Georgians of all backgrounds.
“When you drop off just one box to Goodwill, that provides about an hour of job training to someone who is looking to support themselves and their family,” says Elaine Armstrong, vice president of marketing. “The more donations we receive, the more items we can give a second life to. That means more space in your home, less items harming the planet, and more people looking forward to a stable, hopeful future.”
To enter to win the $500 prize, donors must scan the QR code on their printed donation ticket, which will take them to an online entry form. Fill out the necessary information to be entered. Each winner will be contacted directly weekly until the drive ends on Earth Day, April 22nd.
Goodwill encourages donors to visit their website to find their nearest location and to learn about items they do and do not accept before making a donation.
