It’s that time of year again to spring clean and rid your family of the hoards of unnecessary objects taking over your home.
But the question is what to do with it all?
Instead of throwing your junk away (or holding that yard sale you would do back in your home country), you can recycle and donate it back to communities in need. Here, we give you a list of organizations that will happily take your unwanted items.
So get into the spirit of spring cleaning and rearrange or sweep up everything, and feel the rejuvenation that comes with the season, and do so responsibly.
Mom to Mom Sale
Founded in 2008 by two moms, this non-profit group now sells thousands of kuai’s worth of used children’s items. They have six sales per year. (It’s also a great place to shop for kids, although if you’re spring cleaning, it might not be the best idea.) Fifteen percent of proceeds are donated to the Heart to Heart, a community outreach organization that provides support for children undergoing heart surgery. They only accept 50 vendors for each sale, and the registration fee is RMB200. Check out their website for specific information regarding the items they accept, how to submit your items, and more.
http://www.momtomomsaleshanghai.com/
Heart to Heart Shanghai
You could also go directly to the aforementioned charity, Heart to Heart, to donate your unwanted items. They welcome new and used clothing for adult and children, as well as books, blankets and toys. Protein-rich baby formula, baby lotions and grooming products are also extremely important as this charity works primarily with underprivileged families. All donations are handled by email: donations@h2hsh.net.
http://www.heart2heartshanghai.net/
The Fiber Project
This environmentally conscious organization urges you not to throw away your old clothes and other textile items, as they’ll most likely end up in landfills or being incinerated. The Fiber Project has 10 bins in Puxi and Pudong (check out their website for exact locations) for you to deposit all sorts of clothing, bedding and curtains, shoes, socks and even napkins and towels.
www.baosquared.cn/fiber-project
À Pleines Mains
Founded and run by French expats, À Pleines Mains is all about providing help to the underprivileged, orphans and the handicapped. They’ll take clothes, books, furniture and other a wide range of items, which are then sold at a showroom.
Puxi location: Mon–Fri 8am–5:30pm and Sat 9am–3pm, Qingpu District, See listing here.
Pudong location: Mon 2:30pm–6pm, Pudong New District, See listing here.
Mifan Mama
This NGO provides basic services (food, healthcare, education) to orphanages across six provinces. You can help them by donating clothing (for babies, children or adults), toys and games for all ages, books (Chinese or English), diapers and baby wipes and furniture.
Call Julie Garratt regarding donations at 139 1871 9179 or email mifanmama@outlook.com
River of Hearts
This group provides underprivileged families around China with essential items like clothing, shoes, bedding and toys and creates opportunities for those who live in Shanghai to help others who are less fortunate. There are three locations in Shanghai for you to drop off your donations, one in Puxi and two in Pudong.
Puxi location: 9am–9pm, Changning District, See listing here.
Pudong location: 8am–8pm, Pudong New District, See listing here.
Panda Boxes
The government has installed 800 panda boxes around the city for people to drop off unwanted clothes. Donated items are then disinfected and distributed to those in need.
There is no map with all their locations, or way to trace them, but we know of one in the lobby of the Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences.
This article originally appeared on our sister site, Urban Family Shanghai.
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