Rotterdam-based Byewaste collects the items that people no longer use for free from their homes. With the app, it’s easy to schedule an appointment to get a driver to pick up books, electronics, toys and textiles for example.
Once the unwanted items are collected by Byewaste they are reused. The quickly growing start-up is always on the lookout for new ways to give a second life to the items they collect through a network of sustainable partners. Items may end up at the thrift stores of Het Goed and Boekenbalie. Sneakers go to Wear to be freshened up and resold.
Pre-loved stuff that can’t be sold anymore gets a different process. Together with OurkilO Byewaste has set up a pilot for example. Collected PET1 plastic is used to make new products. OurkilO is an award-winning company based in Rotterdam North. By experimenting with various plastic waste streams they figure out the most effective ways to recycle. The used plastic is make new products for local use such as flower pots and sandpit shovels for the children. To decide what items to create, OurkilO asks local residents and organizations to submit their ideas. This way, the citizens of Rotterdam are given the chance to do something good for their neighborhood, while they will benefit from the end results themselves.
