Diverting surplus furniture from the waste stream will contribute to the goal of achieving zero furniture waste at the UBC Vancouver Point Grey campus.

Buying items from the program will lower procurement costs through cost-avoidance: the price difference between buying a new or used item.

UBC practices the Campus as a Living Lab (CLL) model to promote a culture of continuous and iterative learning. Continuous improvement will allow the Program to implement a best practice approach to reuse programming, that can be scaled to other waste streams, and other institutions.

The program adopts the ethos of a circular economy by encouraging the reuse of surplus furniture and other items.

Circular economies focus on reducing, reusing, recycling, and redesigning.

• Reducing: GHG emissions are a consequence of consumption and production. Ask yourself, do I really need this?
• Reusing: by reusing what has already been produced we can reduce waste. Ask yourself, can I rent it? Can I buy it second-hand?
• Recycling: by dismantling end-of-life items into reusable components we lower GHG emissions and reduce environmental impacts related to landfilling.
• Redesigning: Producing new items using post-consumer materials reduces our consumption of natural resources.

Waste creates environmental impacts related to air, land, and water contamination. Practicing reuse reduces consumption and production. The Program supports reuse and waste reduction actions by making used items financially accessible and convenient to buy.

Reusing items that we already have on campus, helps to reduce GHG emissions by reducing the need to buy new items. Producing and transporting new furniture to market creates GHG emissions that can be avoided by choosing to shop at the Zero Waste Market.