If you have clothes that are worn only a few times and you don’t know what to do with them, consider dropping them off at the clothes donation bins at South Agora.
Organised by Conservation Interest Group (IG), the Give and Take Clothes Recycling Collection Drive is an initiative that aims to minimise textile waste by encouraging students to donate their clothes and support sustainable fashion.
The donation drive is ongoing from now till 31 July 2023.
The Conservation IG in Republic Polytechnic (RP) has been conducting drives and initiatives since 2019 to promote sustainable living among RP students. It encourages students to cultivate green habits through reducing textile waste. This year’s clothing collection aligns with the SG Green Plan 2030 which aims to reduce waste to landfill per capita by 30% in 2026.
This project was started in 2019 to promote sustainable living among RP students. It aims to cultivate green habits through reducing waste. The IG started by collecting food items and recyclables in 2019 and moved on to textile waste from 2021 onwards.
Their main goal is to reduce textile waste to help conserve Semakau Landfill as well as educate the public on the issues raised by fast fashion.
GIVE WHAT YOU CAN, TAKE WHAT YOU NEED
Many students have donated their pre-loved clothes during this period.
One of them is Soren Silver, 20, a second-year Diploma in Mass Communication student who donated shirts and dresses they were no longer wearing. Soren wants to be known by the pronouns they/them.
Through the school email and Conservation IG’s frequent updates on the different events and activities around the campus, Soren learnt about the clothes recycling collection. As a person that always felt that donating clothes is a much more sustainable alternative compared to disposing of them, they wanted to do their part.
“If I dispose of it, nobody gets to wear the clothes and it will just contribute to the ongoing landfills of garbage. At least by donating, it will allow me to do my part for the world,” they said.
Soren stated that even though the clothes no longer gave them the feeling of happiness, they were sure it would provide the happiness and satisfaction for someone else. This was Soren’s main motivation for donating their clothes.
The Give and Take Clothes Recycling Collection Drive accepts any pre-loved clothes that are in good condition, that are free from stain, rips and tears. Undergarments and swimwear are not accepted.
Members of the Conservation IG sort out the clothes by size and gender. Clothes that are in good condition will be distributed to beneficiaries such as Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities, whereas unsuitable items will be upcycled into arts and craft items. They can also be used as inner lining for tote bags and pencil cases.
TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE LIFESTYLE
Conservation IG plans to continue contributing to the sustainable living goal by helping to reduce the amount of textile waste going into landfills.
Some upcoming events that focus on reducing textile waste include a talk and various workshops on upcycling in collaboration with the National Library Board (NLB). This event will be held at MakeIT Woodlands NLB in September.
During this period, the IG will also be collaborating with childcare centres to upcycle clothes scrap into arts and craft items.
To find out more about these events, visit the National Environmental Agency (NEA) website to stay up to date on the different clothes recycling drives and channels available in Singapore.
