Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Doggie-bag It: Passiton.Org.Sg

I think the disposal of something, or indeed anything, is an important consideration. It is a topic that most people neglect. 

Disposal of everyday items that are produced as a by-product of frequent consumption is a real waste of resources. Things like extra plastic bags, plastic drink bottles, disposable food packaging, advertisement leaflets or brochures are just examples of how we produce a lot of waste that, to a large extent, can be avoided. 

Disposal of larger household items is equally bad. In Singapore unwanted household objects are often left at lift lobbies or at the ground floor of high rise apartments. It gets in the way and is unsightly. Although there are proper avenues to dispose household items, people simply cannot be bothered to bring their items to the rubbish dump facilities. This is really a deep-rooted behavioral problem. 

Conscious of the issue of proper disposal, I've been searching for a way to meaningfully dispose of my spare mattress which I've used over the last 10 years because I got myself a new one from Maliland that helps me with my bad back. I thought perhaps I could do donation or I could break it down into parts that could be upcycled, recycled or reused. 

What showed up was an interesting online donation portal known as Pass It On.org.



How-tos:
To donate an item, simply fill out a form with your contact details and pictures with a description of your item. Your item will then be listed on the database of donated objects. Representatives of local registered Voluntary Welfare Organisations can login to the portal and search the database for suitable objects needed by families whom they look after. Where there is a suitable match, the VWO Reps will then contact you to confirm item availability and subsequently arrange for pick-up.

To date I've listed my mattress and a spare table-top fan on the portal, and already managed to rehouse my fan with a new family. My fan is now being put to good use instead of sitting lonesomely in a corner of my storage room collecting dust. My mattress doesn't appear to be popular but I will still keep it listed for a few weeks before I go on to Plan B.

If you guys out there need a meaningful way to de-clutter your living space, do give the portal a go. If your items are still in working and reasonably clean condition, there should be no reason to let them go to waste in the rubbish dump!

And you will also receive a personal thank you note for your kind donation!

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