Recycle for Change collects surplus clothing and shoes through donation boxes across Northern California. What you drop off doesn't go to a landfill and doesn't sit in a warehouse. It's brought to our Richmond facility, sold on the open used-clothing market, and turned into funding for community-based work fighting poverty around the world.
We own and operate every box we place. We donate all net proceeds. And the whole thing starts with a closet you were probably going to clear out this weekend anyway.
Based on EPA estimates, even with all the thrift stores, worship houses, and door-to-door collections in the country combined, only about 15% of textiles are diverted from landfills — and most U.S. municipalities offer no textile recycling at all. Every bag you bring us moves that number in the right direction.
A garment worn again is a garment that never had to be made. Growing cotton and manufacturing new clothing consumes staggering quantities of water and energy and releases significant CO2 — and the same clothes, left to rot in a landfill, release methane on the way out. Reuse cuts off both ends of the problem at once.
This is where the money goes. Proceeds from the clothing we collect fund the training of volunteers who work alongside communities across the globe — growing food with local farmers, teaching in schools, helping bring clean water and solar power within reach.
One simple test: would you hand it to a friend? If yes, we want it.
Everything should be clean, dry, and in wearable condition. That's not us being fussy — the clothing we collect goes on to be worn by someone, and that's precisely what makes the whole model work.
Anything torn, stained, wet, or mildewed. Items contaminated with oil or chemicals. Household waste.
There's a cardboard box in your garage right now from an online order. That's all you need. Full details on mailing a box.
Through our partnership with Give Back Box, you can send clothes and shoes to us from anywhere in the country. Fill the box, attach a label, hand it to UPS or USPS. It lands at our Richmond facility and follows exactly the same path as everything else — sorted, sold, and turned into funding for work against poverty.
Up to 70 pounds per box, with combined length and girth under 108 inches. Nothing liquid, fragile, hazardous, or electronic, please.
For a tax receipt on a mailed donation, create a Give Back Box account and itemize against your tracking number. The receipt is emailed once your box arrives and is processed.
Recycle for Change is a nonprofit organization under IRS code 501(c)(3).
Dropped a bag in one of our boxes? Fill this in and we'll email your receipt. Mailed a Give Back Box instead? Your receipt comes through them, as described above.
The IRS asks the donor, not the charity, to put a value on donated goods — so the figure above is yours to decide, and we simply record it. The IRS allows deductions for the fair market value of donated clothes, and used clothing must be in good condition or better to qualify. See the IRS website for more on valuation and limits. Questions? Write to info@recycleforchange.org.
Whether it's hosting a Box, organizing a collection drive, or dropping off a bag — every pound counts. Some people give clothes. Some give time. Both move the same work forward.