TBT: The WasteShed's 50 Ton Nickel Fund
CELEBRATING 50 TONS OF RAD STUFF
The WasteShed: The First 50 Tons — Video by Tiffani Bauer
—— The following was originally posted in May of 2019——
The WasteShed's 50 Ton Nickel Fund
In June of 2019, The WasteShed will take in our 100,000th pound of donated creative and educational materials, bringing us up to a round 50 TONS of art and school supplies that our amazing staff and volunteers have processed and redistributed within the Chicago community. At the same time, we are looking at a budget shortfall for the summer, just when we are hoping to jumpstart some amazing programs and start working towards expanding our organization into other neighborhoods.
Just for kicks, we calculated what portion of 1 year of Chicago's total waste production this represents, if 365 days equals 13.7 million tons.
The answer is... just under 2 minutes. 1 minute 55 seconds, to be exact.
Is this discouraging? Sure. But, aren't you glad someone is doing this work?
We have estimated the value of the materials we have diverted from the landfill during our first 5 years of operation at $896,800; and in 2019 alone, we are slated to divert 48,000 lbs (another 55 seconds) of materials, nearly 50% of our total to date. Those 55 seconds will provide Chicago's schools and arts community with $432,000 worth of materials. This map shows the distribution of 247 Chicago-area nonprofits and schools that use The WasteShed as a resource:
Because we keep prices accessible for our community, the portion of that value which comes to us as actual income is much smaller, however; we cover about 75% of our expenses through sales, but we rely on grants and the generosity of our friends to fill the gap.
In celebration of our 50th ton, we are asking our friends and community members to donate just one nickel (5¢) for every pound of materials we've kept from rotting forever in a greenhouse-gas-producing landfill, for a total of $5,000. Any amount we receive over this goal will go towards assuring that The WasteShed is a bounteous, accessible, friendly resource for Chicago's artists and teachers for years to come.
Thank you for all the love! — <3 WasteShed