Swap events: How to host one in your community

Join Reuse Minnesota and our friends as we dive into the details of planning and hosting a swap event in your community!

You can host just about any type of swap event that you can imagine: books, clothing, gardening tools, toys, media, and more! Swap events have many benefits. They help promote the reuse of items, keeping them out of the landfill. Swaps can foster community building by bring together like-minded individuals. Since there is very little to no cost involved with planning or participating in a swap, swaps can be accessible to many. If you'd like to learn more about hosting a swap event in your community, join us for our free webinar. All interested individuals are encouraged to attend! Register for the webinar here.

Panelists

• Madeleine Mork is a full-time stay-at-home mom to 3 kids (5, 3, 1). She attended her first clothing swap just before her first child was born in 2016. She and a close friend took over organizing and coordinating the swaps in 2017 when the gal that had started them moved out of state. Madeleine has since hosted and coordinated 12 swaps (both children's and women's) and is gearing up for one in May. They have previously partnered with a local thrift store to donate the leftovers to, although last year almost all of the leftovers were given away through her local Buy Nothing group, for which she is also an admin.
• Patti Paulson leads West Metro Clothing Swaps, which has gained a lot of media attention since its start in 2012. She has also started North Shore Clothing Swaps, hosting their first swap in 2021. Paulson looks for ways to upcycle and reuse items in her artistic designs for sculpture, costume and fashion. Paulson is known for her work with the climate action group, the Fashion Disasters and her artcar creation, the Lipstick Car.
• Andrea Siegel is the former Co-chair of the Tangletown Environmental Committee and a Hennepin County Master Recycler/Composter. In June, she will start as the Tangletown Neighborhood Association's Interim Executive Director. They did their first swap in summer 2021 and hope to make it an annual event. The event combined the swap with a sustainability fair and invited local sustainable businesses to have a tent for perusing. 
• Sadie Struss (she/her) fell in love with her Buy Nothing Group in Brooklyn, NY. When she moved back to the Twin Cities in November 2020 she was sad to find out that her neighborhood had no group so she decided to start one! Within her Buy Nothing group she has been involved in clothing swaps, fall activity swaps (puzzles/board games/ crafts/ books), and stocking stuffer swaps.