Photosource: www.planetaid.org
NOTE: Dear Readers, please click here Planet Aid Revisited: Not a Charity after all: Do Not Donate, to read the updated post on this article. We gathered new information on this charity and therefore want to provide you with the best and most accurate information on this so-called charity, which we learned later has some major issues. Thanks for taking a look!
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Doing some Spring cleaning? In need of a fresh wardrobe, and wondering if there’s a better way to get rid of those old clothes while doing some good? Green Cotton has found the perfect solution for you!
Planet Aid is a non-profit organization founded in 1997 and based in Holliston, MA, dedicated to improving the lives of people in developing countries. They collect goods in over 7,000 clothes collection boxes across the United States in order to raise money for development, protecting the environment, and relief aid to Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Because only 15% of textiles thrown away in the US annually are recycled, this is certainly an area that could be improved, and would in turn decrease landfill waste.
By reusing clothing that would otherwise be thrown away, Planet Aid is protecting the environment in a larger way. Planet Aid also actively works to restore and preserve the Earth’s atmosphere, soil, plants and animals by initiating preservation projects in rivers, seas and the forest.
Planet Aid also uses money raised by clothing to serve victims of hunger, war, natural disasters, atomic accidents, plagues and other catastrophes, to assist the relocation of peoples, and to rebuild areas hit by these types of disasters and accidents. They have also established educational facilities for training personnel and volunteers.
Planet Aid estimated that in 2005 alone, their work sustained 16,000 jobs worldwide. They were also responsible for the reuse of cotton clothing that saved 60 billion gallons of water and more than 45,000 pounds of pesticides! Planet Aid saved taxpayers in Massachusetts alone approximately $1.8 million of landfill disposal fees.
There are tons of yellow bins throughout Massachusetts, New England, Ohio and other parts of the country including the Los Angeles area, so check out their bin locator to find the nearest drop box to you. We highly recommend it!
Sorry to rain on the parade, but Planet Aid is NOT a charity. They sell the clothes they get and only a small portion of it goes to people in need. The Better Business Bureau refuses to recognize the organization as a charity. I was pretty sad when I read this:
http://www.thebollard.com/bollard/?p=5750
Also, recycling through Planet Aid takes donations out of Goodwill, Salvation Army, and other charities that do work locally.
Thanks Genna for your comment! We are doing more research on this as we speak and I really appreciate your calling attention to the deficiencies of this organization. I was not aware of this and after reading the bollard post and am very disheartened by their work. We are doing more research on Planet Aid and will be updating this post shortly with more information and perspectives on their donation history and deficiencies. Thanks again.