Reuse Rising: Building the movement
We know our Community is ready to ditch throwaway culture. So, we’re training volunteers, building community power, and boosting the reuse movement for a cultural shift. This quarterly newsletter is a nod to the inspiring and impactful work of Reuse Changemakers across the U.S. and includes action you can take to join the Reuse Revolution.
What’s inside this issue
- Story of Stuff’s Serve Up Reuse campaign is LIVE!
- [Story] Reuse Coalition Spotlight (featuring Zero Waste Ithaca)
- Reuse movement landscape snapshot
- Events and opportunities
- [Video] Reuse in the real world – Mottainai Refill (Colombia)
- A look at the companies pushing back against reuse
Communities Engaging in Serve Up Reuse
This June 16th on World Refill Day, The Story of Stuff Project announced the launch of our Serve Up Reuse campaign. We hosted a virtual launch party that shared the Serve Up Reuse campaign – focusing on communities making big changes in local foodservice operations through reusable foodware policies and bringing reuse services and systems to schools, venues, events, and more.
We hosted nearly 50 advocates and organizations across the US-based reuse movement excited to join and launch the Serve Up Reuse campaign in their own communities. You can Serve Up Reuse, too – join the campaign here!
Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate the launch of Serve Up Reuse!
In future editions of this newsletter, we hope to feature the incredible ways that communities are implementing Serve Up Reuse across the US – whether that’s through policy advocacy, reuse infrastructure development, or community initiatives.
To kick things off, we are sharing our Serve Up Reuse sign-on graphic and inviting you all to customize the post, tag us on social media, and use the rest of our digital assets in our Serve Up Reuse toolkit in whatever ways accelerate your work.
Check out our Serve Up Reuse toolkit for a customizable Canva template of this graphic, add your organization’s logo, and start Serve Up Reuse in your city!
Reuse Coalition Spotlight Story: Zero Waste Ithaca
This issue’s Coalition Spotlight features the voice of Yayoi Koizumi on the work of Zero Waste Ithaca. Yayoi recently received the NYS Senate Commendation Award from Senator Lea Webb on May 8. Congratulations, Yayoi!
Yayoi: I was grateful to receive Senator Webb’s commendation. I see it as recognition of the many people who have helped build Zero Waste Ithaca’s work over the years. We are a small grassroots organization, so much of our work is practical and local: helping normalize BYO, pushing for waste reduction in local climate policy, and supporting reuse in schools and businesses. Our current reuse focus is the Bring Your Own container policy through our national network, BYO-US Reduces.
To me, this work is about refusing the idea that disposable systems are inevitable, and building enough public pressure and practical examples that reuse becomes ordinary again.
Senator Lea Webb (center left) conferring the NYS Commendation Award to Yayoi Koizumi (center right)
Reuse Movement Landscape Snapshot
Story of Stuff is building a reuse movement with the power to win. We are dedicating resources, training opportunities, and more to the movement because we believe that reuse advocates equipped with the right tools can create a wave of reuse wins that the world cannot ignore.
- As part of our Reuse Changemaker Bootcamp training series, Story of Stuff has trained over 375 reuse advocates since 2025! With the knowledge of the reuse policy landscape and grassroots organizing skills, these advocates are joining and starting reuse coalitions all across the United States that are pursuing local reuse foodware policies.
- The reuse movement has grown significantly over the last decade, and today we find ourselves organizing with over 30 reuse advocacy coalitions across the United States – 3 of these coalitions have launched in the last year, led by Story of Stuff and our Reuse Changemaker graduates. To-date, we have matched over 175 Changemakers to local coalitions after graduation from our Bootcamp!
- We are building the narrative for normalized reuse through digital media. Our Reuse Revolution video series has received over 600,000 views and our reuse advocacy social media posts have reached over 20,000 people, normalizing reuse in everyday life across the world.
- Globally, the international reuse organization PR3, in collaboration with national reuse world leaders, has released its new Marking & Labeling Standard, which outlines requirements and recommendations for labeling reusable packaging, collection points, and system signage. This includes a new standardized reuse symbol – check it out here!
- Nationally, the Story of Stuff views the federal REUSE Act (S. 2110) as a threat to the reuse movement. While well-intentioned, the bill requires the EPA to develop a report on the feasibility of and best practices relating to reuse and refill systems. We do not trust this administration, which is so industry-influenced, to conduct such a study at face value. A bad study can lead to bad legislation that pre-empts good local and state policies.
- Regionally, we wanted to highlight an exciting story from the Pacific Northwest. Dish, a new program of The Environmental Center, is bringing reusable foodware to Central Oregon! With the help of three grants, Dish is implementing two initiatives: Dish To Go, a reusable container program, and Dish For Here, which switches food cart lots and events to reusables through an innovative Central Oregon Wash Hub in partnership with Bold Reuse. With the support of a broad coalition, Dish plans to follow the systems change work with policies that can help accelerate the shift to reuse.
Events & Opportunities
- Story of Stuff’s Reuse Changemaker Bootcamp – THIS MONTH
- Basic Training (Tues. July 7th or Thurs. July 9th)
- Leadership Training (Mon. July 13th or Tues. July 14th)
- Serve Up Reuse monthly campaign call – sign up here!
- Hosted on the 4th Wednesday of every month, the SUR monthly campaign calls offer a peer support network for those investing time and energy into the SUR campaign.
- Tell McDonald’s: Stop Hamburglaring Our Reusables. McDonald’s, the world’s biggest fast-food chain, is battling us to derail reuse laws.
Reuse In the Real World
Do you often wish that reuse could come right to your door? That’s what Mottainai Refill is providing, a Colombia-based project building a culture of refill by offering direct delivery service to customers. Their Mottainai delivery routes span the city of Medellin, meeting loyal customers where they’re at to make refill as easy as possible in everyone’s daily life.
We were able to partner with their incredible team for our latest mini-doc for the Reuse Revolution video series. Check out the short video and let us know what a Reuse Revolution means to you.
Companies Pushing Back Against Reuse
On the eve of the European Union’s implementation of its landmark Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation this summer, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and a host of other fast-moving consumer goods brands are attempting to water down and roll back its timeline. The regulation, which includes reuse targets for retailers, beverage producers and fast food entities, has some of the most significant packaging and foodware reuse laws in the world, with implications beyond Europe in the years to come. The world is watching – make your voice heard and sign our petition to hold industry accountable!
Stay tuned
Thank you for continuing to follow the ever-evolving Story of Stuff. We know that maintaining hope and believing in solutions to the take-make-waste status quo is a challenge. But we believe that a unified reuse movement can change the way things are. We also believe that we can’t make that change alone – we need you! Now is the time to stay involved and gear up for the Reuse Revolution.
Interested in more? Subscribe to the Reuse Rising newsletter!
