Before you gather up clothing donations for non profit organizations in your area, make sure that you know not just what to donate but why it’s so vital to do so. You may not have known these facts about donating clothing to charity organizations before, but once you know, you’ll be able to make better decisions about giving your donations to charity:
Americans donate a lot — but we could be donating more.
Most people in the United States try to donate to charity when they can because many know the true value of charitable donations for helping families in need. Total giving in 2012 amounted to $316.23 billion in all sorts of donations. Approximately 70% of Americans give to charity at least once per year, and for many families, that means donating clothing. Clothing donations, which are measured by weight, amount to anywhere from an estimated 2 million tons donated or recycled to about 14.3 million tons to help clothe people worldwide. However, those amounts could be much higher given just how much clothing is thrown away each year.
Too much clothing winds up in landfills in the U.S.
Research estimates that between 12 and 13 million tons of clothing and textiles are thrown out nationwide annually, and despite being easily recyclable, only about 15.3% of it is actually recovered to be recycled or reused. Clothing and textile waste accounts for around 5% of all waste in American landfills, which isn’t quite as shocking as the fact that the average American throws away about 68 pounds of clothing per year. This likely happens for a number of reasons — some people may feel that they don’t have the time to donate, such as if they are moving away, and others don’t know where to give their donations for non profit organizations. However, taking the time to give is one of the simplest ways to do one’s part in saving the earth.
Clothing is one of the easiest items to donate.
Despite getting thrown away at alarming rates, clothing is so easy to give. It can be reused easily, and for items that are no longer usable, they can be broken down and recycled in some cases. It is estimated that around 99% of all clothing and fabric thrown out in the U.S. can be either reused through donations or recycled. In fact, donating is one of the easiest ways to help make a positive impact on the environment because it diverts that waste from the landfill and significantly decreases pollution. Best of all, there’s no right or wrong time in terms of when to donate clothes. Donations for non profit organizations are generally accepted year round, and although specific needs of organizations may change (e.g. more coats for the winter), they can be accepted by a variety of organizations that need help from people like you.
How do you plan to change your donation habits? Tell us in the comments below.
