For the past three years, Bowdoin has participated in Dump and Run, an organization that began when a Syracuse University student lost a ring and decided to search the dumpster for it. She did not find the ring, but instead found lots of still usable items.
Over time, she continued to search the dumpsters and decided to have yard sales with the salvaged items to generate money for non-profit organizations. The Dump and Run organization grew out of this and has spread to colleges and universities across the country.
Dump and Run boxes will be placed in Bowdoin's dorms and social houses so that you, too, can discard any unwanted but still usable items. Volunteers from local non-profit organizations will help organize these items for a large yard sale held on the ice hockey rink in June.
Bowdoin's Dump and Run has raised $50,000 for local non-profits in the past three years. So not only can you reduce your amount of waste, but you can also help benefit local non-profit organizations. Just thinking about all the extra space you'll have in your car after you donate your unwanted items, you might want to go to the Dump and Run yard sale and purchase someone else's old, but still good, items for yourself!