Reuse
Learn ways to reuse and re-purpose items rather than sending them to landfill and find contact details for local groups who can help mend and repair your items.
Pass it on
- Donate, sell or swap unwanted items – one person’s trash is another’s treasure!
- Host a clothes swap at your home with a group of friends.
- Consider passing on unwanted items as gifts to friends and whānau.
- Consider shopping second hand as your first option.
Bring your own
- Containers for refill and bulk buying stores.
- Coffee cups and water bottles.
- Reusable cutlery and straws.
- Food containers for takeaways.
- Reusable cloth napkins and handkerchiefs instead of disposable.
- Reusable shopping bags.
Ideas for re-purposing items
- Use shoe boxes for organisation or storage.
- Use the fabric bags that bed sheets come in as organisers for laundry or packing.
- Reuse empty food containers as Tupperware or for storage.
- Reuse empty beauty containers for storing small items in your home.
- Use paper bags for gift wrapping.
- Use tin cans as pencil holders.
- Use glass jars as cutlery holders.
- Use plastic bottles as watering devices for your garden.
Repair and care
Get familiar with your local repair shops for electronics and gadgets, or have a go by searching on YouTube to see if it’s a simple fix you can do yourself.
Contact local community repair groups who might be able to help:
- Men's Shed Whangārei (mensshed.co.nz) - Railway Road
- THRIFT (theheadsrepairitfreeteam.wordpress.com) - McLeod Bay for broken items
- Repair Cafe Whangārei (facebook.com) - holds free monthly events where they help to repair small applications (no microwaves), textiles, bikes, wooden items, sharpen tools, toys and more.
- Whare Bike (facebook.com) - free bike repair drop-in sessions
Get stuck in with DIY and have a go at fixing old furniture or household items yourself, or hire a tradie.
Invest in better quality items when purchasing so that they will last longer where possible.
