Maintaining the momentum of Linens N Love’s environmental sustainability movement during a pandemic
As we go along the way, we encounter plenty of obstacles such as the COVID-19 situation; however, that should not deter us from being involved in our community and making a difference.
An example of determination and adaptation is prominent in the award-winning nonprofit organization, Linens N Love, established in 2014 by Vivian, 17, and May Wang, 20. Vivian and May co-founded the organization when Vivian was 12 and May was only 14.
Usually, hotels discard linens including pillows, bed sheets, towels, blankets, and more because some have some slight imperfections so they can’t offer them to their guests. As a matter of fact, all of these linens end up in the landfill and can take weeks, months, or even years to decompose!
Discarding linens on a daily basis poses a threat to the environment since it contributes to the earth’s pollution which could potentially have an effect on global warming.
In order to avoid this, Linens N Love started collecting all of these items with small imperfections that are discarded by hotels and they started re-purposing them because they are still in very good condition and can be used by those in need. They are donated to homeless families, low-income families, as well as other nonprofit organizations like animal shelters, veteran's homes, and women’s homes.
Linens N Love is run entirely by young motivated volunteers like high school and college students. Individuals can volunteer from anywhere around the globe from the comfort of their homes.
Once you become a Linens N Love volunteer, you are considered part of the family. Everyone is very welcoming, kind, and dedicated to serving their community. You can keep in touch with other volunteers or with the founders via Whatsapp, Instagram, or email.
To restore volunteer opportunities for young changemakers, Linens N Love launched their Virtual Volunteering Program consisting of three main teams.
There are three different positions available at Linens N Love, the first one is Ambassadors, which are in charge of promoting Linens N Love’s Instagram by teaming up and creating a social media campaign. They can do Instagram takeovers, answer other’s questions, and post about Linens N Love in their personal Instagram stories.
Another position available is Research Bloggers which write articles about topics that relate to Linens N Love for example about how the environment as well as other volunteer opportunities offered by other organizations that way more people can get involved in their community.
The last position is Project Leaders which are in charge of coming up with projects that they can do in their community such as masks and food drives.
Volunteers are encouraged to be part of more than one position, in fact, you can do all three! Volunteers don’t have a specific schedule in which they have to volunteer, they can dedicate time whenever they are available.
As of now due to COVID-19 volunteering is virtual therefore volunteer roles have been adapted to this situation. Linens N Love’s goal is to use social media and internet platforms to inform others about what they do as well as how you can start making a change!
Additionally, Linens N Love offers the opportunity for students to start a Linens N Love Chapter at their school.
The Chapter Presidents can earn over 100 community service hours per year, receive a scholarship to attend the leadership summit, have access to WE Day tickets, be part of Linens N Love’s volunteer events, receive T-shirts, and much more.
Apply now to become a virtual volunteer and/or to start a Chapter, the applications can be found here so don’t hesitate and become part of the LNL family today!
Resource
Interested in learning more about Linens N Love? Visit LinensNLove.org or follow us on Instagram @LinensNLove to stay connected with the Linens N Love community!
