Everyone loves the extra money in their pockets when they resell something. On top of this, being able to purge yourself of something you no longer need is both freeing for your physical space and your mind. But reselling items has another benefit other than personal profit that is sparking a lot of movement — promoting sustainability. In 2020 pre-owned electronics and apparel sold on eBay alone was able to conserve 720,000 metric tons of carbon emissions. This also conserves water needed to produce new clothing and rare minerals used for new electronics.
People who resell have all sorts of niches that help our planet in different ways. Some sellers salvage parts and use them to repair appliances which in turn keep those parts from ending up in landfills. Other sellers work on refurbishing tech so that new tech isn’t created. Still, others create products that discourage single-use plastics such as making beeswax food wraps.
Companies alone can begin taking steps that also aid to help our earth. eBay has in place plans that will allow them to attain 100% renewable energy usage for their data centers and offices by 2025, they were at 76% just last year. The White Mesa Wind Project which is a Virtual Power Purchasing Agreement (VPPAs) between Apple, Samsung, eBay, and Sprint is currently generating 75 megawatt-hours of clean energy- that’s enough to power 20,000 homes!
When buyers, sellers, and companies all begin working together and commit to a sustainable future we can start to make a real difference in helping our world. This can look like conserving water, diverting waste away from landfills, and growing renewable energy to power data centers and offices. Everyone has a part in making the world a better and healthier place to live in.
