What’s going on with community reuse?
A roundup of local initiatives across the US
Did you know? Since Upstream’s Reuse Solutions Network began in 2019, it has grown in membership from a couple dozen to 1300+ advocates, government representatives, NGOs, and reuse entrepreneurs, with new sign ups every week. As of now, we’ve tracked 114 total reuse laws in the US & Canada, covering 23% of the total population. Many of these reuse policies—not to mention non-policy work—can be attributed to the work of over 35 independent local reuse groups & coalitions working across the US & Canada, who have the insight and relationships needed to make change on-the-ground.
In light of all this activity, this summer we are spotlighting some advocacy strategies local groups and coalitions have used in the past year, in order to share insights and learnings other community groups can leverage for their own success. As these examples show, no matter where you live—in a small town or large city, and across the political spectrum—there are several strategies to bring reuse to your area.
You can hear more in-depth stories about strategies deployed in Central Ohio, Miami, and Toronto in our recent podcast and vlog series!
BYO Campaigns
The vision of a reuse economy is to make reuse systemic and driven by municipalities and brands, not the consumer. In the meantime, though, many communities are running campaigns to encourage and remind people to BYO (“bring your own”) containers when getting coffee, groceries, or for packing up leftovers.
In Long Beach, CA, LBReuses hosted a “BYO Month,” with gamification elements including a stamp card and gifts to encourage reuse at approximately 20 coffee and retail shops and numerous community events. They also created a gift card raffle for a local coffee shop, which customers were automatically entered into if they used a reusable cup for their beverage purchase. When a plastic bag-free farmer’s market opened in the community, they purchased reusable tote bags at a liquidation sale and handed them out to shoppers.
BYO stickers are a popular way to help businesses signal that they accept refillable containers. Volunteers from the Austin Reuse Coalition and Reuse Maine canvas coffee shops
and, if they are BYO friendly, request that a sticker be placed in the window to raise consumer awareness. Once Maine had a good collection of shops carrying stickers, they launched a directory of BYO friendly businesses on their website. On Earth Day this year, BYO-Baltimore Reduces went a step further, incentivizing volunteers to get businesses to display their stickers by offering small cash prizes.
Policy Campaigns
One of the most popular local campaigns across the US & Canada are variations of “Skip the Stuff” policies, also known as accessories only upon request. Zero Waste Ithaca is actively working on such a campaign, employing tabling tactics and publishing letters to the editor in local publications to help spread awareness. Other popular provisions, which Zero Waste Ithaca is also pushing for, include reuse for onsite dining, allowing and encouraging BYO, and single-use container and bag fees.
In Los Angeles, ReusableLA convened over a dozen internal workshops, bringing together the coalition’s policy experts to develop recommendations for local decision-makers. They produced a Model Reuse Ordinance and an Ordinance Explainer Document, which are both now being used to advocate for the adoption of strong reuse policies in Los Angeles. These efforts have positioned ReusableLA to advance and help pass two new local laws, reuse for dine-in and disposable foodware regulations, with formal proposals now moving forward.
ReusableNYC, in the meantime, is working hard to pass the Hydration For All Act (INT 900), which requires NYC to install 500 reusable drinking fountains / bottle refill stations equitably across the city, by 2035. The coalition is embarking on a postcard campaign to help pressure the City Council Speaker to bring this popular bill forward for a vote.
Events, Workshops & Symposiums
One of the best ways to get a new group or coalition rolling, or to garner more momentum and participation within an existing group, is to gather together for focused engagement, planning, and workshopping.
PlasticFree Marin created an Action Workshop, which spawned an educational presentation and campaign around BYO, which they presented at an Earth Day event and continue to use to engage and educate the community. Reusable Alameda County was an organizing member of a Reuse Innovation Panel, which took place as part of SF Climate Week. They collaborated with local partners to host a zero waste event with reusables, leveraging the opportunity to both educate the public and recruit new volunteers. Meanwhile, the Austin Reuse Coalition hosted a “Venues x Reuse” happy hour to allow venue managers to learn about the transition to reuse at event venues from their peers who are leading the way—while also raising awareness around the city incentives for waste reduction at local businesses.
In 2024, CircularSTL launched the first annual CircularSTL Symposium, in which they highlighted reuse as a core strategy for circularity. A diverse array of speakers and panelists from across sectors helped frame reuse not only as an environmental imperative, but as a lever for equity, innovation, and job creation. Since the event, more than 80 organizations have formally engaged with the effort, and the energy in the room catalyzed new collaborations that directly led to monthly convenings for CircularSTL and development of a shared regional strategy.
Projects & Pilots
Trying out small-scale reuse systems in a community can be a great way to test the waters, gather data, and learn what works best in particular areas. This was Central Ohio Reuse Coalition’s intent when they launched their coffee shop reuse pilot in the Columbus area, which you can learn about in depth here.
In the meantime, Maine’s Deposit-Return System (DRS) law was recently updated to include a requirement for $500K per year from unclaimed deposits to be spent on reuse. Leveraging this opportunity, Reuse Maine has started laying the groundwork for a reusable beverage bottle pilot. They hosted an educational happy hour at a local brewery for local craft brewers, distillers, and dairies, seeking to raise awareness of the upcoming DRS funds and garner interest in converting to reusables. The hosting brewery was so excited about reuse that they have committed to purchasing a bottle washing machine, and Reuse Maine is now supporting a collaboration between them and a local bottle redemption company as they explore machinery and operations.
Community & Business Engagement
Raising awareness in the community is a key step in any reuse initiative. Community groups have shown a lot of creativity in how they engage stakeholders, leveraging the skills and expertise among their members and taking advantage of the unique attributes and challenges of where they operate.
Repair workshops are one popular way to keep household goods out of landfills while also helping communities save money. LB Reuses, for instance, hosts quarterly “FixIt Clinics” with high turnout, and there are many more such programs across the country.
A substantial component of BYO-Baltimore Reduce’s BYO campaign involved community outreach and business education. Campaign leaders spearheaded weekly meet-ups at a local coffee shop during which they collaborated with the shop and its staff to educate them on the campaign’s objectives and benefits. They also met with and surveyed coffee shop customers and actively recruited new volunteers from among those surveyed as well as the broader community—which in turn helped them expand their reach.
Schools are another great place to engage around reuse: cafeterias are an enclosed system, reusables save schools money over the long term, kids learn new behaviours quickly, and parents are concerned about the toxic effects of single-use plastics. Reusable Reno has been working with their school district on a multi-pronged approach. A parent and Reusable Reno member created a Green Team at her children's local public school to mobilize parents around the project and raise awareness in the school. The group engaged the entire community, from surrounding schools, administration, faculty, and families, to nutrition services, neighboring school districts, local elected officials, and grassroots organizations. Their tactics included creating a petition to the County school district administration and the district’s concessionaire, asking to switch to reuse; attending local events and meetings to spread the word about reuse; creating posters; and sending out regular emails.
In Los Angeles, where there are several new waste reduction laws in place, the reuse coalition has a strong ongoing educational and engagement campaign. They attend dozens of in-person community events to share information and resources with residents and businesses, and also print and distribute thousands of educational tip cards to local businesses, equipping them with clear guidance on plastics reduction policies and compliance steps.
How to Get Involved
As this roundup shows, there is no one right way to advance reuse within a community. From influencing policy, to symposiums, to making sure restaurants are identified with a BYO sticker, and everything in between, what’s most important is picking a project that resonates and leverages the skills and capacity of those you are working with.
If you've been inspired and would like to get plugged in, you can find a local reuse coalition or learn more about how to start one, here. Another great way to connect with resources, troubleshoot barriers, and expand your network of reuse advocates is to join the Reuse Solutions Network. Thanks for helping to catalyze and normalize reuse from the ground up!
