Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: It Takes A Village

Recycling

​Each week, we go through hundreds of cardboard delivery boxes at the food pantry. We’re extremely grateful to to the City of Cambridge recycling teams that make multiple pick-ups here every week and to all the volunteers who help load up their trucks.

Additionally, it's thanks to the work of LB and Cida (pictured) that makes sure drivers like Kevin always get a chance to pick up meals and supplies before they leave. Take a page from their book - be kind and show your appreciation to all of the hardworking waste management teams that keep our communities clean and sustainable.

Reducing & Reusing

We had a successful first few days of reusable bag service at the food pantry last week! Big thanks to Pam, a Cambridge City Growers volunteer who sourced hundreds of these unused and unlabeled yellow tote bags from a local print shop earlier this week.

These bags not only bring a splash of color to our gym, they also reduce our dependence on disposable plastics. By not ordering thousands of plastic bags each week, we can cut down on environmentally harmful waste while saving the Center a significant amount of money. 

Now, what we used to spend on bags becomes a source of funding we're able to redistribute towards offering additional resources/support services to our community members. We are hopeful that this arrangement will continue to be sustainable for our pantry's operations - ultimately hoping that our new model will inspire other food distribution services to follow our lead. 

Our reason for making such a commitment to innovate our distribution strategy boils down to our belief that serving our community involves both supporting our neighbors and respecting the environment we share. While the Center's programs directly support our community members on a day to day basis, we believe it's our responsibility to minimize any detrimental impact that our work leaves on the environment we share - a continued effort that will help to better the lives of our community members (albeit indirectly).

If you’re able to donate reusable bags to our Food and Supply Pantry, please do! 
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Additionally, if you or someone you know picked up a bag from us today, please make sure they get returned to the bright green drop-off bin outside of our gymnasium, at the back of the Center (pictured).

​For more information on our reusable bag service, please send an email to our Community Engagement Coordinator, Zach Goldhammer.