Spring cleaning came early at the Boston University Women’s Resource Center’s first-ever eco-swap Friday afternoon.
About 75 Boston University students cleaned out their closets and said goodbye to used items in hopes of being able to exchange them for new items as part of the WRC’s Ecofeminist Skillshare.
The Ecofeminist Skillshare aimed to promote environmental awareness by teaching attendees skills, such as bike repair, clothes mending and vegan cooking, WRC Co-Director Mackie Welch said. The WRC’s Women’s History Month theme was ‘women saving the environment,’ she said. Participants were able to drop off their contributions to the swap throughout the week.
‘ ‘We felt this would be a great way to recycle things we don’t use anymore,’ Welch, a College of Arts and Sciences senior, said. ‘A lot of times, friends swap clothing among each other. We just wanted to expand upon that idea and open up a swap for more people.’
CAS senior Jennifer Ontaneda said she came to the swap because she thought it sounded fun.
‘It’s like shopping for free,’ Ontaneda said. ‘Also, this swap helps unite many of the women on campus.’
Jamie Sharp, also a CAS senior, said she enjoyed the environmentally friendly aspect of the event.
‘This swap is 100 percent eco-friendly, especially because it is not generating more waste,’ Sharp said. ‘This swap shows that recycling does not have to be only about recycling paper or cans.’
Students swapped items from shirts, hats and jewelry to zebra-printed boots, used shampoo and a grilled cheese maker.
Although attendees said they were impressed by the success of the swap, some said it could have been even more successful.
CAS junior Vanessa Montero said she wished the event had been publicized more.
‘I think that if this event was advertised more on campus, it could be an even bigger success,’ Montero said. ‘I wouldn’t have known about this event if it wasn’t for one of my friends.’
Attendees said they were interested in future swaps.
‘I wasn’t able to participate in the swap this time because I didn’t have much to clean out,’ CAS senior Emily Calvin said. ‘However, I love the idea of the swap and would participate in it if it took place again.’
Members of WRC hope to make the swap annual, Welch said.
‘One woman’s trash is another woman’s treasure,’ she said.
This is an account occasionally used by the Daily Free Press editors to post archived posts from previous iterations of the site or otherwise for special circumstance publications. See authorship info on the byline at the top of the page.
