The Freecycle Network facts for kids
The Freecycle Network logo
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| Abbreviation | TFN |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1 May 2003 |
| Legal status | 501(c)3 |
| Purpose | Reuse |
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Region served
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121 countries |
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Membership
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6,880,991 |
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Founder, executive director
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Deron Beal |
| Website | www.freecycle.org |
The Freecycle Network (TFN) is a private, nonprofit organization registered in Arizona, US and is a charity in the United Kingdom. TFN coordinates a worldwide network of "gifting" groups to divert reusable goods from landfills. The network provides a worldwide online registry, organizing the creation of local groups and forums for individuals and nonprofits to offer (or request) free items for reuse or recycling and to promote a gift economy. In contrast, although flea markets and swap meets also contribute to the 3 Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle), they involve mainly buying and selling or bartering rather than gifting.
History
TFN first began when its founder, Deron Beal, collaborated with RISE, a small nonprofit corporation that offers recycling services in the downtown area of Tucson, Arizona, US. The team worked together to find local nonprofits that could potentially use their products, but it was not too successful. Hence, Beal created the first Freecycle email that enabled online users to interact with recycling. In February 2005, TFN accepted $130,000 from Waste Management to help build out the website and the network.
Over time, the concept has spread to over 110 countries, with thousands of local groups and millions of members.
The organization began as a collection of Yahoo! Groups linked from freecycle.org. It has become a web-community platform on freecycle.org for all groups, which are run by local volunteers. TFN encourages the formation of new groups, subject to approval by regional new-group approvers. Groups approved by TFN are listed on the website, can use the TFN name and logo, and are subject to rules which are enforced by a network of global and regional group outreach assistance. As of March 2009, all new groups had to join freecycle.org's new-group system, which provides Freecycle-specific tools for local volunteer moderators and gives TFN oversight of individual groups. As of 2015, all local groups are listed on freecycle.org.
Membership
Membership is completely free to all members, and everything posted on the website must be completely free, legal, and appropriate for everyone regardless of their age. Today, TFN is a global organization with over 4,000 local chapters. They passed two-million-member in February 2006. By February 2014, TFN had 6,880,991 members across 5,120 groups worldwide. In December 2023, TFN had 11,022,137 members across 5,355 groups worldwide.
See also
In Spanish: Freecycle para niños
