Local Buy Nothing groups build community and the sharing economy
The concept is simple: purchase less, trade more and get to know your neighbours.
A hyper-local gifting economy known as The Buy Nothing Project is gaining popularity in Vancouver, BC, strengthening community during the pandemic and encouraging its members to purchase less.
The concept is simple. Neighbours join their local Buy Nothing group on Facebook. Each group has defined geographic boundaries, ensuring its members live close to each other.
Group members can post anything they want to borrow or give away for free. Gifts are given generously with no strings attached, abiding by the project’s golden rules: no buying, selling or trading.
Created in Washington in 2013, the Buy Nothing Project now exists in 44 countries worldwide with 37 groups in Vancouver alone.
Connections to combat loneliness
“It feels like a virtual, modern-day front porch. Everyone is so thankful for every little thing,” says Sheila Louis, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mom and member of the Buy Nothing Riley Park North group.
Louis joined the Riley Park group around five years ago, at a time when very few people were participating. She watched the community grow to over 1,200 members as of last March, causing the group to “sprout” into two smaller North and South groups to maintain community closeness.
“It’s really introduced me to my neighbours, people I may not have known but who only live a block from me,” she says.
After a woman living near Louis responded to her “ask” for cheese from Costco, the two now regularly shop for each other and share baked goods. The group also teaches her young daughter about community building and recycling by sharing toys with other children.
Buy Nothing’s growing sense of community comes at a crucial time, as loneliness is on the rise in Canada. An Ipsos poll showed that over half of Canadians felt isolated and lonely at the start of the pandemic.
As the country navigated lockdowns and social restrictions, feelings of loneliness only worsened. Morneau Shepell’s national Mental Health Index reached its lowest score in February, largely due to struggles with isolation.
Maria Marcakis, a 36-year-old stay-at-home mom and member of the Buy Nothing Riley Park North group, appreciates the greater sense of community connection.
“People start thinking about neighbourhood differently when they participate in it,” says Marcakis.
The group inspired Marcakis to make her “small bubble better” by creating a fairy garden outside her home using gifted craft supplies. The garden spreads joy in the neighbourhood she says, as children frequently stop by to interact with it and add their own trinkets.
Wasting less, gifting more
The Buy Nothing group is also popularizing the circular zero-waste economy and encouraging members to spend less on new purchases — a welcome benefit in the midst of pandemic-related unemployment and financial struggles.
“I buy less since joining the group. And instead of returning items that I think will end up in the landfill, I’d rather gift them on the site,” says Louis.
“It’s a wonderful way to shift the way we buy, use and participate in economies. It gives me a way to get rid of stuff that doesn’t give bring me any pleasure, but that other people can make use of,” adds Marcakis.
