Freegans

I use this approach all the time. I shop thrift store, and reuse items. I will do research on Freegans maybe I could implement other stuff that can reduce waste.

There is a whole website devoted to it. I never heard of it before you asked your question. http://freegan.info/

Well I'm not quite a freegan. That's a new term on me but an interesting one. I will be the first to check out Freecycle to see if something I'm looking for is on there (especially if it's expensive like furniture). If friends are getting rid of things I ask them about it. I also let them know when I'm getting rid of things. I love finding a good bargain, at the store, thrift places or garage sales. Since our money is tight here where ever I can save money I do.

I've been doing this all my life before it had a trendy term for it. It's called survival and global awareness. When the earth runs out of resources, where do we think we are going to get more resources from? The moon? It helps to live in a college town where after every term the streets and dumpsters are littered with perfectly useful and barely used items. I got a perfectly good namebrand wooden sewing machine cabinet that way once.It was missing one hinge that didn't effect the usefulness at all. Where I live now there is a man that comes around with a truck who gleans things he can fix up and resell. And our local American Cancer Society told us they collect used cellphones and then they reprogram them for abused women so they always have a cellphone in case of emergencies. The ACS also accepts medications from deceased cancer patients and then gives them away in Mexico and also they collect eyeglasses to give to the poor. Yes, it takes an effort to keep things out of landfills. But the world you are saving is the one your grandchildren will be living in.

Well I am not a freegan, but i wish i knew all the free techniques. I know i would be getting everything free. I hear about people getting free computers and ipods and everything. All I want to know is how. I would really be doing the same thing. I amsure of companies, high ranked companies that give a percentage of things away for free. Because of the tax write off for them. But i just don't know to access that information. And i am not willing to pay someone to give me this information because after all it is free.

Thrifting is a very "In" thing to do in my area. It's so longer something you do when your friends can't see you. The deals in some of the church and hospital shops are incredible. I once got a perfect vintage Hermes scarf for $3.00....The older stuff is also better made and just nicer than some of the crap out there today and people know it.

Freegans are people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources. Freegans embrace community, generosity, social concern, freedom, cooperation, and sharing in opposition to a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, conformity, and greed.

i have not heard of Freegan before. But i admire their ethics... not sure i could do it though because i love new things too much.

I'm into Dumpster Diving, the coupon/grocery sale thrift, reselling curbside and dived finds, bartering, online freebies, recycling, freecycle, etc. Alot of which I've been doing since the 80's. But you know it's all getting a bit trendy when they finally come up with a label for it.

I must seriously budget my money, since my income is the only one for the household..therefore, I shop mainly at thrift stores and yard sales. If I need some extra shelves, for instance, I will scour these places for cheap ones. I honestly can't see spending $20 for a shelving unit even at WalMart if I can get some for just a few dollars elsewhere. I have lots of things that I need to do with my money and I can't spend it all in one place. I am familiar with the thrift stores in my area and basically know which one is more likely to have whatever it is I'm wanting or needing at the time and I start there. Most of the furnishings in my house has either been bought this way or given to me. I have no problem with this...these things were going to be thrown out anyway, and I can get good use out of them. I go to one of the local "scratch and dent" stores where they have things such as canned goods with dents that the regular stores don't want to sell, and I get them cheaper. It allows me to buy more things with the little bit of money that I have coming in.

This is interesting. I've never heard that term before. I don not live that way, nor do I know anyone that does. To each his own.

I love Freecycle but I still buy things I do use Freecycle though it is very good for getting things or getting rid of things.

I'm not quite a Freegan but ask me this question in a year and the answer might very well be "yes!" I love freecycle and have been known to curb crawl once in awhile. I also talk to the local grocery store about food they're about to pitch out, mainly fresh produce. If I can use it quickly enough, I can get it for very little, often nothing. For me it's partially about saving money but it's mainly about not being wasteful of our resources. If something still has use in it, whether it's food, clothing, kitchen appliances, etc. why not use it? That just makes so much sense not only from a financial stance but also from a stewardship stance. For more info on Freegans, go to: http://freegan.info/

I love this and agree wholeheartedly with the ethics of a freegan lifestyle. Like most others, I am not 100% freegan, but I find "curb shopping" wonderful. The sturdiest wooden chair I owned at one time came off the curb. :) My biggest frustration recently is that I've been less successful. I recently moved to Toronto and havne't had any success locally :(. Rather annoying, that. ~Sara

I absolutely support Freeganism because if you become aware of the actual amount of good things that people throw away or abandon in one month here in the US, it would sicken you. A few years back, when I had the need for money, I would harvest all kinds of items and either use them myself or repair them and sell them when I needed cash. I live near two universities... when the students move out they toss heaps of reusable items on the trash, items that could help families in need. Parents would be shocked to see where their money actually winds up... I have found brand new cooking appliances, clothing, books, computers, expensive stereo equipment, dvd players, you name it... The Freegan lifestyle is one that deserves to be applauded, the embody the vigor and valiant qualities of the human spirit without the need for the rightly named "trappings of society".

I have never heard the term before but I have been a midnight skip goblin (would that be a dumpster humpty in the US?) for years! It's important to wear the right clothing because what you need may be mixed up with things you definitely don't need! Broken glass, twisted metal, broken fluorescent tubes and such things are to be carefully avoided. I haven't joined the Freecycle network but much of my wardrobe and quite a bit of furniture has been rescued from charity shops (and many things have gone there as well).

it is a new concept to me and i like it. i am gonna try it.

eew now, being frugal and wise with your money is one thing, even adopting a waste not want not attitude is fine, but basically reclaiming other peoples trash is gross. spend a lil money on new things once in a while and those items will last longer

Can only say I am part Freegan. It has been a tool and now a group I enjoy belonging to. Have made a few friends through it. Reducing waste is important and anything we can do will improve where we live. Have a solar and wind powered house so we do try to live and not produce so much waste etc. Recycle all we can and watch what we buy in what kind of packaging. Great topic and glad you responded to mine!

Some freegans argue that shoplifting is not truly freegan because it runs the risk ... Many freegans also argue that those who criticise freeganism for not ...